There’s hope for life’s storms
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Editor,
“Lost at sea” is a heart-wrenching message. The El Faro sank on Oct. 1, near the north coast of Cuba. News media reported, “33 souls aboard went down in 15,000 feet of water.”
I’ve often sailed the Inland Sea of Japan, traveling between Hiroshima and Matsuyama, when storms or dense fog engulfed the small passenger ship. It’s tough sailing to be aboard a ship when most of the passengers are seasick. Nor is it comforting to experience your ship stalled in the fog at night. With search lights beamed into the thick foggy blackness and the frequent sounding of the ship’s horn, we waited. Frightening thoughts cross the mind, would we be seen or heard by approaching ships? Were we near land; our harbor?
There is an Island in Saginaw Bay, Michigan, called Charity Island, which for many years provided a lighthouse to assist ships with navigational aid and a safe harbor in times of storms. Grateful sailors gave the island its name “Charity” because they believed it was there because of the charity (love) of God.
Sometimes in life we have to navigate through rough seas of difficulty, loss, heartbreak, or incomprehensible circumstances; we long for still waters, the end of the storm.
There are a couple of lines in God’s Book that would indicate that Israel’s beleaguered King David understood that God would provide protection and direction, stilling the raging storms he faced in life. Psalm 107:29-30, “He (God) calmed the storm to a whisper; and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor.” (New Living Translation) — also see Matthew 8:23-27.
The El Faro sank because it lost power and was unable to navigate the towering waves. We empathize with those families who lost loved ones in the storm. We pray for family and friends facing life’s storms that they too may find God’s “charity island.”
Harvey A. Town
Polson
