Living Close to God Brings us Hope
This boat anchor cross was a gift to me (Linda Bobbitt) from Pr. Fred Castor. Here is the story of it’s symbolism.
Prayer: Dear God, open my heart to receive what you want for me. Amen
Hope is our spirit’s last ditch effort to survive when all else fails us. Hope holds on in spite of all reasons to give up.
The Christian symbol for hope is an anchor. The anchor goes out of sight into the depths of water and grabs onto something strong and solid and holds it in position. In spite of the turmoil on the surface it stabilizes the vessel, and keeps it from blowing to its destruction.
The symbolism suggests when we are anchored into God, our lives will be stabilized, preventing the storms of life from destroying us. We are kept safe when our hope is in God, rather than in anything else in life. Living closer to God can give us this hope - this life-saving stability.
Life, at its very best, is not devoid of severe storms. Nothing can prevent these storms, which test our meddle, as well as the resources we have at our disposal. Life’s troubles jerk us around in their relentless efforts to destroy us. We all have experienced difficult and trying times. Life is not easy. In fact, at times it is truly devastating. We need all the help we can get. When all else fails, hope is all that is left - hope for help - hope for relief.
If and when we live close to God, we are given this eternal hope which is anchored in God, and holds us securely throughout life’s threatening storms.
What might this look like in real life beyond the theoretical? What are life’s severe storms? Job loss, illness and health problems, untimely death of a loved one are a few examples. Anything disrupting life and emotionally devastating would qualify as a severe storm.
Everyone has either experienced or at least witnessed life’s storms. They can be overwhelmingly destructive. Yet, even in the face of such a storm, hope can still remain intact when the victim is in a close relationship with God. God’s strength and power are relayed to the very soul of the victim, and hope is mysteriously sustained. It is truly a mystery how this functions, but it does. Living ever so close to the Holy One works as an anchor stabilizing life in the midst of life’s most threatening crises.
