February 4, 2019 – Click here to listen
So, Friday I left for the Bahamas in raging seas. The weather forecaster said it was going to be a little rough making the trip across the gulf stream however they missed it a mile.
So why didn’t I just turn around and come home? It was a friend of mine’s only chance to go and I decided to make the trip in spite of the weather so he wouldn’t miss out, besides the forecaster predicted the weather would clear up for the balance of our time and be nice and smooth. It took us 8 long, torturous, hours to cross the stream because of the 6-9 foot waves. We were being pounded by an angry sea every foot of the 80 mile trip.
We finally made it and were thoroughly drenched and appeared as though we had swum across. Our original plan was to fish that afternoon, but we didn’t even get there until dark. It had begun raining and we were dripping wet from head to toe with salt water. The people at the hotel told us the weather would be great in the morning. We took hot showers and ate some dinner and went to bed.
The next morning, I was up long before daylight and I knew the weatherman had missed it again as soon as I walked outside. The wind was howling, and it was cloudy and nasty looking. After a quick breakfast we loaded up and headed out to the fishing grounds. The sea was very rough, and it was difficult to even stand up much less get the lines out. We caught a few trash fish barracudas, and a blackfin tuna after fishing most of the day in terrible conditions. Finally, we had enough and began heading back to port. Every direction I looked I saw huge black storms with lightening and rumbling thunder. I tried to find a clear way back to port but every direction I looked was blocked. I couldn’t turn back because the storm had now completely encircled us. The radar screen showed that we were in the eye of the storm and solid red completely encircled us. The only way to get back to the safety of our port and hotel was to get tough and head directly into the storm.
As I was driving the boat through the raging storm and trying to avoid being hit by lightning, I thought about how the ups and downs of life are so similar. We want to avoid the storms in our lives, but we cannot always do so. I thought of the many times in my own life where every direction I looked was nothing but trouble. It is times like those when we must ask God to go with us, and then summon up our courage, put our head down, and meet them head on.
We were in the midst of the storm the entire time right back into the marina. When we got off the boat we looked like four Weather Channel hurricane reporters drenched and bedraggled. Another hot shower, dinner, and another night’s sleep. It was our final morning, and I awoke early as usual and walked down to the boat. There was not even a hint of a breeze. The Lord had given us a beautiful day in which to fish for a few hours and then cross the Gulf Stream and get home. The sky was gorgeous, fishing was good, and we made it home in about two hours safe and sound.
All in all, the trip was a memorable one. We had a good time in spite of our hardship. Reminds me of this poem this morning.
Don’t you quit
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.
Life is odd with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.
– Author unknown
2 Tim. 1:7
For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.