Titanic

James 4:15-16 (NIV)
Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.

I am not really sure what keeps me so fascinated with the sinking of the Titanic, but I just watched yet another documentary about it. In this one divers were going down the three miles to the site to compare the damage on the remains of the ship to the remains from over 100 years ago. Their concern is that sooner or later it will become indistinguishable! Right now while it has deteriorated further, it is clear, it is the Titanic. The very sad part of this entire sinking, is the fact that so many people got on this maiden voyage with the promise from the ship builders that it was ‘unsinkable.’ Trusting in their boasting, bragging and arrogance was the beginning of their end! Their confidence was so great in the unsinkable nature of their ship, that there were only enough lifeboats and preservers for half of the passengers onboard!

I shake my head in disbelief, yet I too have had moments of complete confidence in what I am doing, without a doubt that it is going to be a success! “Of course it will fit, This recipe will be delicious! This will be the best Christmas Pageant ever!” Echo’s of those words describing my ‘less than great’ attempts, haunt me!

Yes, they turned out less than living up to my expectation. I am not saying to anyone that they should not try, but they should try with a humble attitude. And a prayer! Remember Noah? Think he ever built an ark before? No, there was no need to. Yet, he might have built many other useful things that were necessary things for his life. He probably knew a think or two about the tools and woods he would be using. Still his most valuable asset was his reliance on God for the instructions. Remember he was an amateur builder, but with God’s help, that ark survived a worldwide flood with all the kinds of animals God made on it. And it stayed afloat for about a year!

Here’s the lesson to be learned today…take God with you in your plans and give Him the glory! Remember, the builder of the ark was an amateur, the builder of Titanic was a professional! Think about it!