Becoming a Vessel

I live near the sea and boats are a frequent sight.  I can also drive up the shore and watch the boats, birds and waves.  I’ve been looking at boats a lot lately, wondering what kind I would be, if I was made a boat.  For example, wouldn’t it be great to be a yacht, to travel wherever there are open ports, eating luscious food on board, watching brilliant sunsets.  But if I was in dry-dock all the time because I had beautiful shiny wood and cost a fortune to maintain, that would pretty much cut down on my usefulness, so maybe a yacht wouldn’t be the best boat to be…. 

So what about a fun little sailing skiff?  They’re great for short jaunts and just playing in the water.  But do they really serve much more purpose than that?  I watch the young folks here learning how to sail them, and as enjoyable as it looks, I realize they’re only good for short spurts in the sea.

Then there’s the warship.  Now its purpose is obvious—it’s made for battle.  It may carry fighter aircraft, or be loaded with guns to shoot at “enemies.”  But if I was a battleship, my focus would be primarily on fighting.  Ditto for submarines and nuclear weapons’ carriers.  Scratch all of those.  I don’t want to constantly focus on the enemy.

Have you ever seen a tugboat?  It’s made to help pull other boats through tough spots; now that’s a noteworthy purpose!  It’s not  beautiful to look at, but it keeps things moving because it makes sure no one gets stuck in a canal, port, or underneath a bridge.  They’re remarkably useful.  I like that idea, but still feel I haven’t found my dream vessel.

Sail boats are beautiful—sleek and fast, but only good for transportation when the wind is blowing.  If I want to spend my time enjoying life, resting and seeing the scenery, this is ideal.  But if I’m about my Father’s business, and if I must travel quickly, weathering lots of storms, this isn’t the boat to be.

So then I see a fishing boat.  I like this one because its purpose is to bring fish on board.  (Think bringing folks to faith in the Gospel they’ve never heard…)  Certainly I don’t want the fish to rot, so I'm gonna need a sharp crew.  They have to be able to deftly catch the fish, haul them on board and clean them when we get to shore. Yup, a fishing boat would be a good thing to be, but I don’t quite feel it’s my niche.

How about Coast Guard ships?  They sound really important, rescuing people who are in tight spots.  But I think that job has already been taken by One far wiser than me.  However, I like the fact that they watch the coasts, looking for the lost and to keep out the "bad guys."  Another noble cause up for grabs…intercessors and watchmen!  

A cruise ship’s purpose seems to be to support passengers motivated to party—or simply just to relax.  Nothing against that (at least the latter), but I’ve got time staring me in the eyeball, and so do many who haven’t yet heard the wonderful news I know.   So spending a lifetime carrying people around for frivolity seems decadent.

There are probably many more boats I haven’t mentioned, but what about the passenger ferry?  It takes people where they need to go (think discipleship).  I really like the sound of that!  It works with lots of others to be where it needs to be at the right time and its only purpose is to transport people from one place to another.  Yup, I think if I was to be a boat, I’d choose that one.  But maybe the most important thing is to stay in the sea, not in dry dock, or even at port.  Otherwise, I’m not going to be able to serve my appointed purpose.  Let’s get in the water, boat or no, and start swimming, shall we?