When thing get tough and you grow weary, what anchors you?
I would be lying if I said my life has always been easy and smooth sailing. There have been times for all of us when we really didn’t think we would make it through. One of these times is when my 24-year-old son got killed in a car accident. I can’t tell you the effect that phone call had on me. It took the wind out of my sail. I knew I had to make phone calls and let people know, but I could hardly talk. So I called one person I knew I could count on and had them make the rest of the calls. I also had friends and family surrounding me to help and comfort me. But when it comes right down to it, I had to let go and release Jason into God’s hands. How, you ask? Believe it or not I only had to say goodbye to his earthly body. I knew his spirit was already with the Heavenly Father. That was the fact that really anchored me. One of my favorite songs was sung by my granddaughters Savannah and Mikayla: My Anchor Holds, by William C. Martin:
Though the angry surges roll
On my tempest-driven soul,
I am peaceful, for I know,
Wildly though the winds may blow,
I’ve an anchor safe and sure,
That can evermore endure.
- Refrain:
And it holds, my anchor holds:
Blow your wildest, then, O gale,
On my bark so small and frail;
By His grace I shall not fail,
For my anchor holds, my anchor holds.
Mighty tides about me sweep,
Perils lurk within the deep,
Angry clouds o’ershade the sky,
And the tempest rises high;
Still I stand the tempest’s shock,
For my anchor grips the rock.
I can feel the anchor fast
As I meet each sudden blast,
And the cable, though unseen,
Bears the heavy strain between;
Through the storm I safely ride,
Till the turning of the tide.
Troubles almost ’whelm the soul;
Griefs like billows o’er me roll;
Tempters seek to lure astray;
Storms obscure the light of day:
But in Christ I can be bold,
I’ve an anchor that shall hold.
I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I will see my son again in heaven. You see, my son was a born again Christian. Some of you may feel that is unrealistic to believe. Yet, after the initial shock of his death had passed, my anchor in God, and the promises he gives in his Word, was enough to hold me fast. I have an unwavering belief of eternal life for all who accept Jesus as their Saviour. I recently saw my mother pass into heaven, knowing she and I will also be reunited. Twenty one years have passed since my son has left this world, and I still cry, missing his sense of humor, his willingness to help others, and his unfathomable ability to love. But I have an anchor that holds no matter what Satan and this world can throw at me. And whether physical, financial or family problems, I know I have God who is a solid rock as my anchoring point. What do you anchor yourself to?
As parents we need to teach our children about salvation! That Jesus died to save his children from eternal death. Help your children learn the promises of the Bible. Who do you want your children to anchor themselves to?
We as writers find ourselves adrift in a sea of uncertainty while writing the next chapter of our stories. It is only when we can latch on to a solid idea that our work becomes grounded. Our lives are that way too.
For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.
Isaiah 25:4
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Psalm 46:1-3
Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psalms 107:28-29