Plotting a course

Imagine a person in a small boat plotting a course. Ultimately, their desired destination is across the great ocean, which would involve navigating by charts and the stars, and risking unpredictable weather and currents. They may decide this is too daunting, and decide instead to follow the coastline, staying within reach of the familiar coves should storms arise.

Which course to plot?

We each plot a course for our lives, making choices between felt safety and reaching our destination on the other side.

If we plot a safe course, we can take 'day excursions' which offer a taste of the ocean but never leave the sight of land. In this way we can steer from one familiar harbour to the next and so may gradually, one step at a time, travel some distance.

But the ultimate destination can never be reached except by setting sail across the deep ocean, relying on the charts, a compass and the stars, accepting that this also involves a greater sense of danger.

So, which course do we plot in life? Do we keep to the shallows and the familiar landmarks, assuming that this keeps us safe? Or do we set sail across the great oceans, trusting our charts and risking the storms, and so head for a destination that can never be reached by any other course?

In my experience, it is only by trusting the ‘chart’ that is the Bible, and trusting ourselves into the hands of Jesus to protect us when the inevitable storms come, that we can find the one truly safe haven on the other side.