Stay the course!
A ship's
captain stood behind the sailor whose hands
were on the steering wheel and said these
words, "Stay the course", which meant he was
to observe the compass heading and continue in
that direction.
On the
Captain's desk the journey had been plotted:
the compass settings, barometer readings, the
set of the sails-- every detail of the voyage
was constantly to be maintained by whatever He
dictated. But a safe journey depended on the
obedience of the sailors to his commands.
A helmsman
had to pass the tests and learn much through
training before he could assume this position.
That responsibility could not use a
novice--but one who had passed the tests and
proven his reliability, for the safety of the
entire ship and crew depended upon his
following the orders from the Captain.
~~~~
You and I who
have given our lives to the Lord are
automatically involved in His kingdom. Our
lives are not our own---they belong to Him,
and the Lord gives each of us our personal
assignment as part of His "crew". How
important is His command this very day: "Stay
the course!" God is speaking! We are not
to allow our eyes to wander away from His
compass settings, but to maintain the headings
that the Captain has ordered. "To whom much is
given, much is required".
Today
things are unstable in nearly every country on
earth. Worries and fears abound all around us:
unemployment, bankruptcies, rising prices and
interest rates, famines, scandals, deadly new
diseases and viruses, unusual weather,
earthquakes, floods, poisoning of our oceans,
plant life, terrorism, the threats of radical
governments and religions. Indeed, the sea of
life surrounding us AT THIS VERY MOMENT is
polluted with every evil mankind can think of,
each one of them is designed to divert our
attention from the compass setting the Captain
has ordered.
Can
we miss it?
All of us
have practiced "missing it" since our hands
were first allowed to grab that helm.
~~~~
It has been
written that the only reason the Titanic
went down was because the man in charge of
the helm turned right instead of left. He
had initially been on a sailing vessel, but
when this new ship the Titanic was put to
sea, he panicked and forgot that the new
orders would be different.
The error on the
ship's maiden voyage between Southampton and
New York in 1912 happened because at the
time seagoing was undergoing enormous
upheaval because of the conversion from sail
to steam ships. The change meant there was
two different steering systems and different
commands attached to them.
Some of the crew
on the Titanic were used to the archaic
Tiller Orders associated with sailing ships
and some to the more modern Rudder Orders.
Crucially, the two steering systems were the
complete opposite of one another. So a
command to turn "hard to starboard" meant
turn the wheel right under the Tiller system
but left under the Rudder.
When they
spotted the iceberg two miles away, his
"hard a-starboard" order was misinterpreted
by the Quartermaster Robert Hitchins. He
turned the ship right instead of left and,
even though he was almost immediately told
to correct it, it was too late and the side
of the starboard bow was ripped out by the
iceberg.
"To whom much is
given, much is required".
Just as the
two different vessels were powered in
different ways: one using sails, the other by
fuel. You and I must discover for ourselves
that walking in the Holy Spirit changes us
from depending on our own efforts and ideas to
listening for His leadership. These are
perilous times, and we are afloat in a sea of
changes and dangers. How important it is that
each of us draw near to the Captain of our
soul! To learn His ways, to learn His voice!
But we are
not ready to take the wheel unless we know His
Word and have obeyed and followed the Holy
Spirit. "For as many as are led by the Spirit
of God, they are the sons of God". (Romans
8:14)
Isaiah 30:21
"And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee,
saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when
ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to
the left.
May we
earnestly seek to hear that voice in these
perilous times.