Change Course…or Else!

Bruce Kendall Barnard

 

“Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor.”

(Proverbs 29:23 NLT)

 

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday,

ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and

walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering.”

(Romans 12:1 The Message)

 

You may have seen this story on the Internet. Allegedly, it is an actual transcript of a radio conversation between a U.S. Naval Ship and Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland, October 1995.

 

Americans: “Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision.”

Canadians: “Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.”

Americans: “This is the captain of a U.S. Navy ship. I say again, divert your course.”

Canadians: “No. I say again, you divert your course.”

Americans:  “This is the captain of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lincoln, the second largest ship in the United States’ Atlantic fleet. We are accompanied by three destroyers, three cruisers, and numerous support vessels. I demand that you change your course 15 degrees north, that’s one-five degrees north, or counter measures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.”

Canadians: “This is a lighthouse. Your call.”

 

Sometimes we get so focused on getting things done our way we can’t see the dangers that lie ahead. Occasionally that happens in the church—we want church “Burger King” style (“I want it my way, please”). When we don’t get it our way, or the leadership falls a bit short, we leave. Or worse, we stay and pout. I cannot believe that God is pleased with us when we do that! The apostle Paul gave the right advice to the Christians in Rome. What if we followed Paul’s advice instead of demanding things our way? I’m pretty sure God will be pleased, and his blessings will flow.

 

Heavenly Father, sometimes I have a hard time letting you chart the course for my life. Instead, I rely on my own knowledge and experience when it comes time for a decision. Like an over-confident ship captain, I want everyone else to adjust to my course direction. And often, when I do, my pride leads to embarrassment and humiliation. Teach me, Father, the joy of relying on your guidance in the decisions I make, whether large or small. Amen.

 

You have just read “Friday Evening” meditation for September 24, 2010. Guest writer for this devotional is

Bruce Kendall Barnard, lead pastor at the Warwick Valley Church of the Nazarene, in Warwick, New York.