Worse than the Titanic …

Wouldn’t you know it, the one and only time I’ve taken a cruise, it turned out to be an adventure in a hurricane!

I boarded the Carnival cruise ship in the Los Angeles area for what was supposed to be an enjoyable cruise along the Mexican Riviera.

We sailed down to Puerto Villarta and had an enjoyable day there. But then had to rush back to the ship. A hurricane was reported to be barreling down on that area, and we needed to try to outrun it.

We didn’t.

Instead, we spent much of the remainder of the cruise rocking and rolling back and forth in the midst of the storm. We bypassed our scheduled stop in Mazatlan while the hurricane did a lot of damage there. We also had to forego our stop in Cabo San Lucas. We finally dropped anchor in Ensenada, where more than a third of the passengers, suffering from seasickness, left the ship and flew home.

Finally, we arrived safely back in port in Los Angeles.

I was grateful!

One experience I wouldn’t like to have is that of being aboard a sinking ship.

Just imagine what that would be like. The ship is sinking, and you’re trying to help people get into lifeboats. But fear and disbelief cause people to go the wrong direction and perish.

The image of a sinking ship is similar to the condition of our world, which isn’t getting any better; it’s sinking in sin. God has provided you with a “Gospel lifeboat” for every passenger who will accept it. Your responsibility is to lead the people to the lifeboats so they don’t perish.

How should we live as servants of God? As if we’re on a sinking ship, and have a supply of lifeboats. We never stop trying to get people into the lifeboats so they won’t perish.

Or do we?

The world around you is sinking. You DO have “Gospel lifeboats” to share. Are you diligent about helping people into them? Or oblivious to those perishing around you?

Scotty