What do you do when you look among your friends for spiritual companionship but the ship you’re in is sinking deep with no spiritual companionship?
What do you do when you turn to your family for spiritual togetherness but the family you turned to has drifted too far away from God, that spiritual guardianship is sailing through hardship?
What do you do when you crave genuine fellowship in congregational worship, but the churchmanship is drowning in Leodician condition, with decreasing membership?
What do you do when you look to spiritual leaders for spiritual leadership and biblical mentorship, but they themselves are lost and apostleship is mere dictatorship?
What do you do when you look to self for spiritual censorship, but self is too focused on material ownership?
You’d probably answer, “Merry Melodious Melody, we can only turn to Jesus!”
Your answer would be right, but most of us won’t take ownership of our drifting ships.
The truth is, when we’ve turned to friends, families, church, spiritual leaders, and even self- whom we thought we could count on for spiritual support, only to be disappointed, we often turn to the “world”. This doesn’t happen right away, but does so gradually. Why? Because today the things of the world are like cruise ships; they are convenient, all inclusive, exciting, and self fulfilling.
When our spiritual support “ships” experience ship wreck, we sometimes give up on them too easily and quickly. We we say, “ it’s too hard”, “we’re too alone”, “it’s not worth the fight”, “we’ve been deeply wronged”, “why bother?”.
We drift away on the cruise ship, rather than the Fisherman’s(Jesus’) boat. We say, “he, she, they do it, so why can’t I?” We start looking and accepting the biblical wrongs and making them right.
Sometimes, as people going through spiritual hardship, we don’t realize how deep in apostasy water we’ve plunged because we start to enjoy and get comfortable with the wrongs that should be made right. The things of the world have grown on us that we can’t even see ourselves in the world.
Hey, I’m not talking about you, I’m just talking about someone you may know.
Jesus experienced it too you know. He couldn’t look to His friends for the spiritual support needed because He knew some would deny, betray and doubt him.
He couldn’t look to His family nor His hometown because He knew He’d be dishonored
Only in his hometown and in his own household is a prophet without honour,’ he says”
(John 7:5)
According to the Apostle John, not even His brothers believed in Him.😏
He couldn’t turn to the church because He knew they would despise and reject Him. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:10–11).
He didn’t even turn to Himself because he knew He was nothing and had to die; Philippians 2:9
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!
When it comes on to spiritual fortifications, we can’t put all our trust in fallible ships; be it friends, family, church congregation, church leaders, or self.
There are times you will have to jump ship, or help to repair broken ones. But whatever you do, do so trusting and depending on God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Jesus trusted His Father. Jesus believed His Father would provide all He needed in this life and the next. Jesus had faith His Father was with Him every moment of every day. Those who follow Jesus; those who believe in Him, those who place their trust in Him, those who actively seek to align their lives with His life -will experience many of the same things Jesus experienced.
Don’t get distracted by your wrecked ships; friendship, hardship, fellowship, companionship, dictatorships. While they undergo repair, seek Jesus’s guidance and sail your ships in oceans of bible promises.
Even when life seems out of control, you can be sure of this…God has a plan and a purpose for you.
No matter what storm clouds may rock your ships, the light of our savior will lead us safely through.
Though your ship may be rocking and your sails may be torn, you can find rest in the eye of the storm.
Smile in your storm, and sail on my friends! Allow captain Jesus to steer your ships to oceans of prosperity.
Here’s to spiritual survivorship!
Your crewmate- Merry Melodious Melody 🙋🏽♀️
Praise be to God my sister in Christ for those words of encouragement that we can all relate.
God has called us not merely to church Membership but to Discipleship. And being disciples, we are on a mission (Discipleship) and not on vacation (Cruiseship). On this Missionship, we have to learn to deal with Hardship. But it is all about whose mission we are on. Paul puts it this way:
“You therefore must endure Hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (II Tim2:3 NKJV)… Let us not be distracted nor discouraged by those other Ships. Paul continues to say:
“No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs (other Ships) of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” (Verse 4). Let us focus on pleasing the One who has enlisted us, and we will receive our Crownship and be a part of His Kingship
Amen my sister! Self dependency is our biggest down fall. And We are going to drown if we do not reach out and grab hold of our life jacket who is Jesus christ.
Praise God for His Leadership.. Jesus is the way the Truth and the life. If we follow in his steps we will be sure to make it to the wedding celebration .
Your words of encouragement is more than diamonds to me, what can I say, this is a message that is fully digested, and there’s nothing left for me to add, because it’s well said!!! Praise God for his Kingship 🙏🙏🙏