Psalm 130 Anchored with Hope
Wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
Friends in Christ, David Freund, Chief Leadership Officer at Drexel University, has shared that one fall day he was eager to try his new sailboat on the nearby lake. It was a windy, raw day with waves three feet high or higher. But, undeterred by the winds and waves, he launched out into lake regardless. As he cruised along, he soon discovered that the throttle on his engine had become struck in a wide open position. The boat was going faster and faster into the winds and waves. It seemed like a very perilous situation! Afraid? No, not David. No, not until he realized that in his haste to launch, he had forgotten to put his toolbox onboard. He had no means of fixing the cable. … Could things become worse? … Yes, of course! The next thing to do was drop anchor to stop and hold the boat in the terrible conditions and avoid being slammed into the rocks that dotted the shore. But, guess what! In his haste to launch without a toolbox, he had also forgotten to check to see if he had an anchor. Guess what? There was no anchor on board! Much to his dismay, he was left to bounce, pitch, and drift aimlessly – dangerously - in a storm until someone – anyone! – would see his plight and come to his aid. Yikes! (Remember to never go for a ride with him if he offers to take you along!)
(1) I tell you that story for one important reason: our lives, like his boat on the sometimes calm lake, can leave us foundering and in peril. It is life in a world stained by sin. Sometimes we founder on the seas of life because of our own foolish attitudes and actions. We create our own problems! Other times we founder on the seas of life through no fault of our own. We are simply victims of circumstance beyond our control.
(2) But … either way, life can feel fragile and dangerous. Things are beyond our control. And, worse, there is not always someone waiting to help us. Several years ago, Reader’s Digest included the story about a kindly man in a small town who always loved to do handyman projects at his church. Mow the lawn, fix a leaky pipe in the kitchen, paint a classroom, replace burned out lightbulbs. This particular day he decided that he would get out his very long extension ladder and replace the missing shingles on the church’s roof – a dangerous, but much needed task. After he set the ladder in place, climbed onto the roof and began to replace the missing shingles, a huge gust of wind blew over his ladder! He was trapped on the roof by himself with no one to help him. What to do? After several stress-filed hours of fear, he decided to try to climb down on the down-spouting for the gutters – a risky but only-option-left move. Thankfully, he made is safely back to the ground. When he returned home, he explained the eventful day to his wife. She was mortified! “Didn’t anyone see you?” she asked. “Oh, yes,” he said. “Lots of people saw me. And, when I waves for help, they thought I was just being friendly and they waved back. But, no one came to help!”
The situation was not the same but had similar results when Psalm 130 was written. The citizens on Jerusalem were in dire straits. Often attacked by enemy armies, sometimes hungry and destitute in the aftermath of war, occasionally divided in their political alliances of whom to follow, and frequently with weak or empty faith. And, even though the people offered prayers – many prayers! – they did not always believe that God heard them or cared about them, even though He had promised in Scripture, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble and I will deliver you ...”
(5) Like the people in trouble in Jerusalem, we understand that waiting for deliverance can seem impossible. It did for the citizens of Jerusalem as they walked yet again up the hill to the temple to pray. It did later for the Christians in Thessalonica when they stopped tending to their daily chores because of the slowness of the Lord to come. It did for those to whom Peter ministered when he wrote, “Do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
(6) So, more than anything, the Advent season is one of reminder that even though we may feel lost at sea without an anchor, Our Heavenly Father still sees us, knows our needs, and cares for us. And, one important fact more: He has promised that He will send His own dear Son, Jesus, to come at the right time – a second time - to claim us for heaven. Sin, sickness, sorrow, doubt, discouragement, despair, death and the like will be banished forever, for all who believe. A bright, safe, blessed time is coming! We have God’s promise for it! We do!
(7) So, how do we hold on? What do we do? The writer of the Book of Hebrews urged this response, “God … has given us hope - our full confidence in the things we hope for, being certain of things we cannot see – that we may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” Just as Jesus came first as a child in a manger in Bethlehem to begin and complete our salvation through His death on the cross and His triumphant resurrection from the grave, we have the Father’s word that Jesus will come again to claim us. He will. He will. He could come any hour of any day! So, until that day, we work, we play, we worship, we wait, trusting the marvelous promise.
The web site, Sailor Stan: The Sea and Beyond reports that there are temporary anchors that are used multiple times and places, permanent anchors that remain in place for a ship in the port. And, he reports that there are at least seven different kinds of anchors for ocean-going vessels. But, regardless of the kind, all have one shared purpose: anchors settle on the bottom of the sea to hold the vessel and keep it from drifting away by strong currents. Anchors are sure and certain. They offer safety, life and hope.
How blessed we are that God has given us the anchor of faith while we wait for Christ to come again. Hold fast and hold to your hope! Amen.
