Some of my fondest memories are of times when I was out fishing with my father and grandfather. With today being Father's Day, I thought I'd share one of those fishing memories, a rather recent one of last summer with my dad.
It was the first time we were taking my littlest siblings out in the boat. When Kevin and I were young, Dad and Grandpa instilled in us safety precautions that all fishermen need to know, and the laws too in just the right way so little minds can grasp them. Now, it was time we do the same with 6-year-old Chelsea and 3-year-old Garrett. So as we were getting them settled in, we went over the dos and don'ts, the how to and not to behave. One of the things on the list was "don't jump in the lake." We already had made sure they had their life jackets on, all strapped and secured - not only as a safety measure, but because it's the law. It kind of has a double importance you could say. So Garrett says in his matter of fact way, "But if we fall in, our life jackets will save us." I had the privilege of explaining to him that, yes, it will save you, but you still don't want to fall in. Or at least we didn't want him to fall in; he probably would have liked it, after he got over the initial shock and surprise, that is.
We had a wonderful time on the lake. We quickly arrived at our little fishing spot, with Garrett persistently cajoling us to "go faster", and Chelsea enjoying our cruising along, too. My siblings were catching fish with almost every cast, so much so that I set my own pole aside to devote my time to taking the fishes off their hooks! As we Minnesotans are prone to do, not only did we take note of who caught the largest fish, but also the smallest. Kev was awarded with the largest as he pulled in both a northern pike and a bass just as we were packing up to go. Chelsea and Garrett both managed to "beat" my tiny little sunny that I had brought in early on, so I didn't get to claim that "accomplishment." Many were kept and others released (including our three record-breakingly small sunnies), and "the keepers" made a nice dinner the next day. We made our way inland under a beautiful sunset, with Garrett now trying to persuade us to go slower and slower, and Chelsea also not seeming all that eager to get off the water, either. It indeed was a lovely time, and thankfully no one took an unexpected dive.
Kids really do have a way of saying things, don't they? "If we fall in, our life jackets will save us." As I was explaining the life jackets to Garrett, it didn't escape my mind how valid his point was, the simple trust he had, and the lesson that can be learned.
A life jacket can indeed save you from drowning. However, just having one won't save you, of course; you have to be wearing it. You can't just throw it aside when you don't need it; you have to store it right when it is not in use. Not to mention, you have to have the right size, too. And if you follow these specifications, it will save you. You know it will be there for you when you need it, not needing to worry about the "what ifs", just having the trust that it won't fail.
I went on to think of how Jesus Christ is like our spiritual life jacket. You see, we all sin. "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" (Romans 3:10-12, 23) Our sin deserves to be punished, and that punishment is death. "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23) Yet God loves us, anyway, in spite of our sin. And He loved us so much that He did something about it. "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." (Romans 5:8, I Corinthians 15:4) All who place their trust in Him have passed from death unto life. "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:9-10, 13)
Because we sin, it's as if we're already in the lake, and we're drowning, fast. Compared to eternity our life is just a small vapor, not even a drop in the bucket. We need something - Someone - to rescue us, and that Someone is Jesus Christ. Like the flotation device we had on while fishing, we have to do things the right way for Christ to save us. I don't mean "good works"; I mean doing things God's way: You have to admit that you sin and you need a Saviour because you can't do anything to save yourself. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9) Believe that Christ's work on the cross is sufficient and He alone can save you. It takes the simple trust likened unto that of a child, and when you go to Him with a humble, contrite heart and ask Him to save you, He will. The forgiveness and grace He offers will always be "the proper fit." It's as big as you need it, and it is renewed every day. He will be there for you through life's calm and through life's tempests, and He will be there for you when you leave this world behind and pass into eternity.
But a "life jacket" isn't quite the all-encompassing analogy, there's so much more to it. A life jacket is something you fall back on, something you hope you won't really need, and something that can still leave you stranded - floating, but not necessarily able to reach dry land. Jesus Christ is even more than that, He's our Saviour. He's not Someone we only need at certain times or troubling moments; we need Him always, even after our initial saving from an eternal demise. Nor does He only provide us with just the ability to stay afloat, He plucks us out of the water and gives us a safety we've never had before. That doesn't mean we'll never pass through a storm, but that we will never have to go through it alone or without any hope of escape because He'll be there with us and we'll be in the boat which cannot sink. And someday we will reach the final Shore, our beautiful eternal home, with Him, the One who loves us so much, there face-to-face and by our side.
Happy Father's Day, Dad! Thank you for being the godly example you should be and for teaching me in the wisdom & knowledge and admonition of our Lord - not only in my growing up years, but even now. I love you!
