“…having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck.”
1 Timothy 1:19

Ship’s Captain

I have been privileged to take a couple of cruises in my lifetime. I’m never comfortable spending money on myself like that, but my husband works hard and likes to take an occasional cruise vacation to relax. 

On cruises, there is always a fancy dinner held where certain people get invited to dine at the Captain’s table. I’ve never been one of those certain people, so I have no idea what is so special about it. I would probably never be dressed up enough to sit at the Captain’s table anyway. I might not make a good enough impression with my less-than witty conversation. I don’t have any credentials or letters behind my name. 

There is a Captain Who invites me to His table every day, though. It is the Lord God Almighty. I have no need to make any kind of impression on Him, for He knows me thoroughly. My clothes and my words neither fool nor impress Him. I have nothing to offer that He didn’t already give me as a gift. He likes me just the way I am, and He likes to hang out with me!

This morning in devotions, I had the distinct impression that my life is aboard a ship piloted by our great God. He is the infallible Captain. If I stay on board, I am safe, and I will arrive at the other side where eternity awaits. Staying on board means I am to maintain faith and a good conscience, and if I reject these, according to today’s Scripture, I will suffer shipwreck. This would be the same as jumping ship—voluntarily jumping into a little dinghy to be tossed by the waves and wind with no idea where I am or how to get anywhere.

No, thanks. I’ll stay on board with a reliable Captain. My Captain knows how to get me safely where I’m headed. Oh, sure, sometimes the scenery is boring, same-old stuff every day, same routine, same people. And sometimes it is downright ugly—graffiti-laced concrete walls that hint at danger, or paths littered with broken hearts and spirits that tell of hardscrabble lives. But there are also times of sailing past the bright rainbows, the ever-changing aurora borealis, the majestic snow-capped peaks where the wild things are. We see seasons, years, and lives come and go as we sail on. He is a Captain Who never abandons ship, never gets lost, never gives up in the storms, and thankfully, never turns over control of the ship to me.

“Oh Father, help me to stay aboard with my faith and good conscience intact. May I never jump ship into the arms of another, for You are the one and only Captain of my soul. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”