A Cruise Ship to Ponder

I like word pictures; they seem to stick with me longer than most anything else (besides actual pictures). I'm a very visual person, so it makes sense that seeing a picture in my mind will make it come more alive. This past week, I've had a picture come to my mind and it's really sticking, so I'd like to share it with you.

Imagine a big ocean, calm and serene or gray and angry or even storming and wild. Whatever fits your mood for the moment. As you survey the water, you suddenly see a cruise ship coming in your line of sight. It's huge, almost the size of small city, and whatever waves you've envisioned aren't doing anything to affect the cruise ship's path through the water.

Then you realize that you're in a little rubber dinghy with a motor in it, a small motor. And you're heading straight for the cruise ship. You can see people on the ship through the windows, and they're having a fabulous time, dancing, relaxing, or chatting with each other.

You're not sure where the cruise ship is heading, but you really want to know, and so you get right up to its side as it slices majestically through the water. Reaching over, you bang on the hull and yell, "Where are you going? What are you DOING?" No answer.

Of course, you have to keep your course with the ship, but your little motor is having a hard time following, and your useless banging on the hull isn't doing any good, and it's not getting you any answers. So of course... you redouble your efforts and bang harder and yell louder.

This word picture came to me as I studied Isaiah 46: God's purpose is like that cruise ship. Isaiah 46:11b is the verse that inspired this word picture:

"What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do."


We have two choices when it comes to interacting with God's purpose for our lives... we can be on that rubber dinghy, banging on the side of the ship, shouting and agonizing about where it's going. Or we can be ON the cruise ship, relaxing and going with the flow.

Sometimes, even being on the cruise ship doesn't guarantee you know where it's going, but at least you can relax while you're getting there! Personally, I prefer to be on the ship, and whenever I get the urge to get in my little rubber dinghy and start banging on the hull, I stop and ask myself if it will actually do any good.

I can relax on the cruise ship because I know the Captain personally, and I know He's an AWESOME captain and will take me on the ride of my life. If you don't know Him personally, then it makes sense that you'd be anxious to be on a cruise ship and not know where it's going. I hope you get to know Him personally if you don't already. He's a great guy and only wants the best for you.

Any illustration like this will have its shortfalls, and I don't pretend that this one is perfect. But if it helps you as you ponder where you're going in life, then my purpose with this blog has been fulfilled. Thanks for reading, and please comment if you have a moment!