Anchors

I love metaphors and symbols.  So when I view life, I often try to frame it through these elements.  I've been doing some thinking about anchors and those things that hold me in place when the world seems a bit turbulent.

I have no real knowledge of anchors, so maybe one day someone will teach me much more, but a quick bit of research tells me that anchors dig into the seabed and serve a safety role.  They keep boats out of the surf or off the rocks.  An anchor works because when the anchor digs into the seabed surface or snags on a protrusion, resistance is created because of suction.  The suction occurs because of the material on top of the anchor.  To set an anchor the boat must be put in reverse and strain must be put on the line.  You don't know if the anchor will hold unless you then pull it hard.

There are a lot of ways I could make a connection between the anchor and life.  But two thoughts rise to the surface.  The first is that the anchor is a means of digging into the seabed.  For me God's Word is a way of digging into His truth and the reality of who He is and what His purposes are.  God's Word is the means that I dig into God's heart and view on the world.

The other thing that caught me was how an anchor was set.  It was set when the boat actually reversed direction, and when strain was added to the line.  So when my life goes back and then there is strain, God's Word can grip hold into who He is.  That's good, because an anchor I wish to share with you, is one I have already written about on this blog.  Psalm 103 keeps coming back to me.  When I started thinking about what portions of God's Word would keep me grounded during this bend in the road, I kept returning to this chapter.

I include the text below, with my own wording of it in purple beneath the passage.  It has helped me to think about the message in my own words, to make it truly my prayer.

Psalm 103New Living Translation (NLT)

A psalm of David.

1 Let all that I am praise the Lord;                     
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.      
2 Let all that I am praise the Lord;           
    may I never forget the good things he does for me.         

3 He forgives all my sins                          
    and heals all my diseases.                                
4 He redeems me from death                  
    and crowns me with love and tender mercies.    

5 He fills my life with good things.           
    My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!            

6 The Lord gives righteousness                 
    and justice to all who are treated unfairly.       

7 He revealed his character to Moses         
    and his deeds to the people of Israel.   
8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful,    
    slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 He will not constantly accuse us,             
    nor remain angry forever.                  
10 He does not punish us for all our sins;   
    he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.    
11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him        
    is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.  
12 He has removed our sins as far from us       
    as the east is from the west.                  
13 The Lord is like a father to his children,     
    tender and compassionate to those who fear him.  
14 For he knows how weak we are;                 
    he remembers we are only dust.                  
15 Our days on earth are like grass;                 
    like wildflowers, we bloom and die.       
16 The wind blows, and we are gone—                
    as though we had never been here.              
17 But the love of the Lord remains forever                 
    with those who fear him.                                          

His salvation extends to the children’s children     
18     of those who are faithful to his covenant,            
    of those who obey his commandments!                

                                                                                            

19 The Lord has made the heavens his throne;        
    from there he rules over everything.                

20 Praise the Lord, you angels,                               
    you mighty ones who carry out his plans,                   
    listening for each of his commands.               
21 Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels                 
    who serve him and do his will!
22 Praise the Lord, everything he has created,        
    everything in all his kingdom.                             

Let all that I am praise the Lord.                          

At all times, may I praise Him with everything that is in me.
May all that makes me who I am praise Him.  May I always remember the
good He has done!  He has cared for my soul's death and my sin sickness.
He buys me back from death and makes me royalty by his love and mercy.
He provides all that is good, making me soar in renewed strength.
He gives right standing and fair treatment to those who are treated unfairly.
He showed who He is to Moses and Israel saw him by his work.  His character and work testify that He is full of compassion and mercy.   He is patient and loves faithfully.  He  does not remain angry or hold things  against us.  He does not give us what we deserve for our sin.  Those who fear Him receive towering unfailing love.  Their sins are taken away as far as the east is from the west.  Those fear Him are treated with the tender love a father gives his kids. God knows our frailty, our history of dust.  We are temporary:  Sprouting, growing, blooming, and dying.   Time passes and it's like we were never here.  For those who fear God,  His love remains forever.  The grandchildren of the faithful  and obedient benefit and are offered salvation.  God has his throne in the heavens.  From there he rules over everything. Mighty angels who do what He says,  Praise the Lord. Armies of angels who serve Him and obey, Praise the Lord. Everything that He has made in all His kingdom, Praise the Lord.  Praise the Lord, with all that is me!

I hope by sharing this anchor of mine, something strikes deep in your own heart.  I also hope you will take a little time to think about what anchors your life when the big sea starts to rage.  For in this world, we are pretty much guaranteed at one time or another that a storm will threaten to come our way.