Where’s your lifeboat?

by Jonathan Krause

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So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away (Acts 27:32).

Read Acts 27:27–44

Do you ever get tired of all those ‘super’ ads on TV?

You know the ones, where they compare two people and show how the ‘smart’ one can get a lot more money than the less nice-looking one?

These ads pitch money as security.

And yes, you and I do need to plan carefully. But do we need to live in a state of fear so that money drives all our decisions? That’s something we Christians wrestle with. In following Jesus, we know we are called to serve the poor, be prepared to give away everything and put our neighbour first … Yet the world teaches us that money is safety and security and that the more we get, the safer we will be. It’s made out to be our lifeboat in stormy seas.

When Paul tells the sailors that the only way to save their lives is to cut the lifeboat and let it drift away, it’s a huge step of faith for them to actually follow that instruction. In the same way, it can feel a huge step for you and me to purposely cut ourselves from the lifeboat of money and the safety and security it seems to offer.

I don’t have an easy answer on how to do that.

I think God gives us wisdom, responsibility and opportunities. We are blessed to be able to bless. It’s not so much what’s in the super account; it’s what’s in our hearts. I recall a widow I met in Bangladesh who begged for rice each day to survive, yet when she had a few cents, she gave it to help ‘the poor people’. I shared her story in a magazine, and that widow’s example inspired a teenager in Australia to change her career plan and become a social worker instead, so she, too, could help ‘the poor people’.

You know your life. Is there a lifeboat you can let go of so you can be close to the One who promises to be with us through life’s stormy seas?

Jesus, you know how I hold on to things I think will protect me and put my trust in things that will let me down. Help me let go of those fake lifeboats and simply hold on to you. Amen.

Jonathan lives south of Adelaide with his wife Julie. Blessed by children and grandchildren, Jonathan enjoys reading and writing, walking by the beach and watching Collingwood win. Author of many devotion books, Jonathan is the Community Action Manager for Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS).

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