The Anchor of Our Faith

We know the importance of an anchor that provides the stabilization and securing of a ship or boat.  Without it, a vessel can drift relentlessly at the mercy of the wind and tide.

One weekend my wife and I took a trip down the coast to enjoy a little rest and relaxation.  The small town that we visited was serenely nestled in the hills by the ocean.  We arrived just as the sun was rising above the distant horizon—it was stunning!

We saw the beauty of the ocean in the early twilight hours, but a gale force wind was blowing in from the sea.  Huge waves were crashing violently against the shore line and pilings that supported a large pedestrian board walk that extended hundreds of feet out over the water.  High waves surged across the board-walk, causing an unsafe area to venture out on.

At the car we bundled up in our jackets and made our way down a narrow path that lead to the beach below.  We began our belabored walk across the sandy beach, while covering our faces to prevent the sand from blowing into our eyes.  It was a struggle to get close to the water’s edge.

As we reached the more solid, water soaked sand at the shore line we observed a large schooner that had broken anchor in the night and was now ashore being pummeled by the pounding waves.  We could see that it was breaking up with pieces of the hull being torn from their places of attachment.  As it lay on its side taking on water, I thought to myself, “How sad it is that this happened!”   

It was a beautiful vessel, but the forces of nature were taking its toll.  The power of the surf and wind was overwhelming.  We gazed in wonder at what was happening; helpless to do anything; dismayed as we watched the power of each wave slam against her hull, wave after wave.

We watched helplessly as this splendid, sea worthy vessel that once sailed gracefully atop churning, rolling seas was now in serious trouble.  The mooring rope that secured the schooner had snapped.  We could see the frayed end of a large, broken rope on the starboard side.  This rope had failed to do its job of securing the vessel to an anchor at the bottom of the sea. 

I’m sure the owners of the vessel had faith in the anchor, but must have failed to keep the tether rope, the life line between the schooner and the anchor, in favorable condition.  Perhaps they were dilatory in their maintenance routine of this most important rope.  Did they fail to store it out of the sun’s ultra violet rays when not in use?  As you know, these rays can decay and rot a good rope if it is left unattended to bake in the sun for any length of time.

Maybe they failed to prevent the abrasive action of foreign objects rubbing against the rope in time past, producing wear and scuffed areas that may have reduced the rope’s ability to hold fast the vessel to the anchor.

Was the rope weakened, because of rats or birds gnawing and pulling at it, stealing small strands to build their nests?  Little by little this can render a rope useless, because of the frays and unraveled area that are present.  It won’t resist the strain of ongoing jerking and the pulling action imposed on it.

If the owners of the schooner had stayed vigilant regarding the condition of the rope rather than taking for granted that all was well, they could have made the necessary changes needed to insure safety.  Failure to do so could have been the reason the rope failed when it was needed the most.

Another thought is the owners may have been aware of the rope’s condition, but did nothing to pursue correct measures to insure the needed safety measures for the vessel.  Their procrastinating minds may have said, “Oh, its good enough.” or “We’ll never face a storm too great that it can’t handle it.”

The anchor of our faith is the blood of Jesus Christ.  It will never fail the test of the up and down situations of life.  The blood is our sure anchor that provides safety in times of seasonal storms.  Like a ship’s anchor, the blood of Jesus is dependable and provides an assurance to one’s mind and soul that all is well.

It’s up to us to maintain the link between Jesus’ blood and our spirit through prayer, reading the Bible, and witnessing to others about the love of God.  We will always remain sea worthy in the storms of life as long as we are tethered to the blood of Jesus.  If we fail to keep up the maintenance of this tether line and throw it around carelessly and unprotected, impending damage can and will decay certain areas of our life.

If we leave it for someone else to maintain our connectivity to the blood of Jesus, that person or person’s efforts may fail us at the time we need securing the most.  We must maintain our own spiritual well-being and tie proper knots that won’t come lose.  Others cannot live our life for us.  It is a walk of faith, with a determination to live for God that keeps the tie between Jesus and us strong.

(Philippians 2:12), “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”

By allowing the vermin of this world to nibble at our needed resources that keep us secure and unmovable, sooner or later the gnawing of sin will cause damage little by little.  The trivial, small things that we think are not big enough to be concerned with will ultimately allow our connection to our anchor to fail when facing the tempest.

When staying-power is broken, all that is left after the storm has ravaged our soul and beaten us down are the pieces that have been broken.  Tragically our vessel may be going down, because of the impacts that we have needlessly suffered.

I’m sure the schooner was salvageable after the storm had subsided; and perhaps it has been restored to new condition; and sailing the ocean once again, but the cost of repairs may forever be lost unless the insurance company pays off, but that’s another story.  Hopefully the owners learned a valuable lesson by their mistakes and won’t make the same ones again.

If our connection to Jesus has been broken, for whatever reason, we can know assuredly that the anchor of our faith, the blood of Jesus, is ready to secure us once again.  All that is needed is a good tether line.  Prayer is the tether that connects us to the anchor of our soul.  Walking with Jesus and maintaining our mooring keeps us secure in the time of storm.

Written by,

Papa Boyd