And Brendan said to them: “Do not vex and rack your limbs. Is not God our Pilot and our Shipman? Let Him bring us to whatever place He will.”
– The Life of Brendan of Clonfert
Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
– Proverbs 3.5, 6
Off course
It had been many days since Brendan and his crew left the Procurator and monks on the island called Ailbe and set off again on the journey over the sea. But God had other plans for them, which would ultimately lead to Brendan being vexed and downcast.
An incident occurred on the next island in their journey which led to the crew of Brendan’s boat becoming intoxicated and then caught up in a tempest on the sea. The result was that they seem to have lost their way. Brendan instructed them to allow the boat to drift.
As they did, it soon became clear that they were heading back to the island of the Procurator. When the men realized this, they began “to row furiously”, whether toward the island or away from it is not clear. I suspect it was toward, for I can imagine the men by now had just about had enough of seafaring. Brendan again instructed them to take in their oars and let the Lord lead them. He, after all was their “Pilot” and “Shipman.”
It seems they were becoming disheartened. Sin and unbelief had clouded their vision, arrested their progress, and under-mined their mission. Once they landed and the Procurator again met their needs, he directed them how to return to the Paradise of Birds.
Clearly, they were heading back to Ireland, discouraged, dis-heartened, and, for the time, defeated in their desire to know The Promised Land of the Saints.
With us. With Him?
Sin can subvert us at any point in our journey with the Lord. Jesus is our Pilot in life; He is with us always, even to the end of the age. The problem is that we aren’t always with Him. We take our eyes off Him when we neglect His Word and prayer or give in to temptation. Solomon knew how such “drifting” off course could lead to disaster. Having gained grace to do so many wonderful things for the Lord, Solomon thought He could dabble in fleshly indulgences and still hold on to wisdom. (Eccl. 2.1-3). He ruined his life, his son’s life, and the life of the nation as a result. And while, late in life, he repented, for Rehoboam and Israel the die was already cast.
There is no substitute for abiding with the Lord—meeting with Him daily in Scripture and prayer, walking with Him in the power of His Spirit, fixing our eyes on Jesus, pleading with God to make us more like Him, praying without ceasing, and not growing weary of doing good.
The writer of Hebrews warns against the problem of drift: “Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away” (Heb. 2.1). Drift is subtle. You hardly realize it’s happening until you’re trapped in it. Then, row as furiously as you might, it can be hard to get to the place where the Lord refreshes your soul again.
Solomon’s advice is the best. Trust in the Lord always. Don’t think you know better than He how to run your life. Recognize in every fleshly gewgaw the serpent of old and tell him to get lost.
We are headed for the Promised Land of the Saints, brethren. Keep the charts before you—the Word of the Lord—and the Wind of God—His Spirit—in the sails of your soul. Hold fast to the Rudder of Christ’s Presence, and sail on a straight course with Him.
For Reflection
1. What specific temptations might cause you to begin to drift from the Lord?
2. How should you deal with those temptations?
Psalm 71.23, 24
(Solid Rock: My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less)
My lips with joy and praises ring;
to You, Redeemer, praise I bring!
I praise Your goodness all day long;
LORD, humble all who do me wrong.
Refrain, v. 3
A Rock of habitation be;
command Your Word to rescue me;
my Rock and Fortress ever be!
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
If you’d like to see some other examples of the lives of Irish saints, download the PDF of our free book by that title by clicking here.
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast is concentrating on praying the psalms to seek revival—why we should and what we might expect. Our current ReVision series, “Pray for Your Church”, teaches us how to pray for the ministries of our church. Read recent installments in this series by clicking here. And new in our bookstore, our workbook, The Ongoing Work of Christ, shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
Thank you.
Many of you are faithful and generous in praying for and supporting Crosfigell and The Fellowship of Ailbe. Thank you. May I encourage all our readers to seek the Lord about becoming a supporter of The Fellowship of Ailbe? It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal or Anedot, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
All Psalms for singing from The Ailbe Psalter. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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