Anchor Story: God is the rock that holds all together

Several years ago, Chip Gross asked Dave and me to watch his boat, docked at Fort Scott Lake, while he was out of town. We were to check on it every few days, just to be sure it had not been stolen.

The first couple of trips were uneventful, but the third venture, following a night of high winds, was a different story -- the boat was missing. The ropes were dangling from the dock's hooks, but there was no boat.

I, of course, wanted to contact the police to dust for fingerprints, but Dave dismissed that idea as foolhardy and decided to walk the shoreline, just in case the rowboat had finagled its way downstream. Sure enough, about 100 yards away, there it was, lodged in some high grass.

Dave was able to get in it and row it back to Chip's dock. Nautical wizard that I am, I suggested it probably needed to be tied better. Dave gave me that, "No, DUH" look and went about his business of finding stronger rope. Boy, did we ever tie those knots! We created knots no one had ever thought of. It became an "us against them" assault. By the time we were done, it would have taken a chainsaw to cut those puppies off. We were so efficient we could have written a "Navigational Guide to Boat Tying" pamphlet. Get my drift? We werr Impressive. Very impressive.

Three days later, when we went to check on our masterpiece, imagine our shock when, not only was the boat missing, but so was the dock! I kid you not! While I played Coast Guard detective, trying to find signs of foul play, Dave meandered back down the shoreline, and there was our roped contraption, hiding in the bulrushes. This time it took more than just Dave and me to bring it back.

"Pretty good knots," I said, thinking I was funny.

Dave didn't laugh.

The spiritual life teaches us the same principle. It's very important that we attach ourselves to something that is anchored well. And that is Jesus Christ. Our friends will fail us. Our children and parents will let us down. Our spouses won't be as perfect as we had hoped. Our jobs and churches might not be as together as we thought they were. But Jesus is immovable. It's no wonder 1 Corinthians refers to Him as the Rock.

In the book of Matthew we are told to build our spiritual house on rock, not sand. "And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had been founded on the rock." Jesus goes on to say that we are foolish if we build on sand, for that is like hearing what it takes to follow Him but not doing anything about it.

I don't know how people make it without Jesus. When heartache comes, when despair is all they know, how do they survive without our Anchor's assuredness that better things are ahead? That there is a place where they can find solid footing as the waves come crashing in? Jesus promises to be that place. He longs to be that place.

As for Chip's boat, Dave and I never again were asked to watch it. Guess he didn't appreciate our inventiveness. That's okay. Now I'll have time to finish that "Navigational Guide to Boat Tying" pamphlet.