April 8th

April 8th

Read: Matt. 17:20; 21:21-22; Jer. 29:11-12; 33:3

When my older son John was a teen, he built and raced a hydro-plane, a one-person boat which resembled a pumpkin seed and was often called that. It was a light-weight craft which carried a 25 hp outboard motor. It was apt to be unstable in rough water, sometimes flipping and throwing the driver into the water. Because of this, one safety feature was a switch held in the hand to feed gasoline to the motor. (I believe it was called a suicide switch.)

When the driver was thrown, his hand released the switch, and the motor stopped because no fuel reached it. This prevented the boat from continuing to run and perhaps running over the driver or ramming into another boat. It was a fail-safe mechanism.

God is my fail-safe mechanism. When I begin to run in circles because I’ve flipped out of control, His Holy Spirit bids me cease or slows me down so that my thinking clears. If I become bogged down in self or disappointment, He buoys me up and carries me over or through the obstacles. He brings light to bear on the problem and leads through puzzling or dangerous events to fresh hope and vision.

FAIL-SAFE
When your dreams fall in ashes,
When you lose the race,
When your arms can’t quite reach
What your heart would embrace,
When you find disappointment,
When a mountain looms large,
Don’t start crying! Keep trying!
With God’s help, take charge.

He’ll send brighter vision
Than your dreams could know!
He’ll speed you the faster
Wherever you’d go!
He’ll show you the promise
Of bright things to come,
And lead over mountains
On your journey home!

With His brand of courage
You’ll overcome fear.
With the Christ-mind within you
New light will appear.
When He walks beside you
To show you the way,
You’ll aspire ever higher
‘Til you find a new day.

Prayer: Dear God, I thank You for hanging onto me when I get tossed about.