A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.
– William Shedd
Many of us imagine the church as a safe harbour from a stormy life and world. This is of course true, in a sense. The church is meant to be a place of healing, restoration, and so on. But the goal of a church isn’t to gather people in and keep them huddled and distant from the dangers of the world. Instead, the goal of God’s healing and instruction is to equip us to go back into the world to serve and make the Kingdom of God known.
In His most lengthy recorded prayer, Jesus says this to the Father about those who follow Him:
I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. … Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world.
John 17:15, 18
We have a mission, a purpose. We weren’t built for the harbour.
It’s in the ocean that we can truly feel the wind of the Spirit filling our sails, God guiding us and moving us forward, pressing His grace into our hearts and minds.
Where You go we will follow…
Don’t be afraid
Don’t be afraid
Just set your sail
Let’s risk the ocean
It’s only grace
Let’s risk the ocean
It’s only grace