Captain of my Ship

Sweet Morris,

The company Mommy works for celebrated it's 30th anniversary last week. We had a luncheon on Wednesday, and the founder of our company came to speak about the company's early days. He talked about his decision to start his own business, the struggles that the company went through in the first few years, and the resulting success the company has experienced over the past several years.

Something he said caught my attention. He said that at the time he was thinking about starting his own company, he was in his early 40's with a good paying job. He was happy where he was in life. But he saw an opportunity to do something that no one else was doing, and that opportunity intrigued him. He was faced with a choice to either "hunker down or take a chance."

That particular sentence from his speech has been rolling around in my head the last few days. Hunker down means to "take shelter, be or go into hiding, to keep out of sight for protection and safety."  The term is most often used when talking about an approaching storm, as in "we are going to hunker down and wait it out." What struck me about our founder's statement is that he used the term "hunker down" to refer to a time in his life when there was no storm - a time when he was happy, comfortable, and safe.

The choice to hunker down or take a leap of faith is a choice that all of us are faced with at some point in our lives. In reflecting on our founder's statement, it occurs to me that the strongest temptation to hunker down in life often comes when our lives are going as planned. My faith has grown in this storm, and it's easy right now for me to allow God to be in control. When we feel there's nothing left to lose, I think we are all a little bolder in our faith and willingness to take a chance. But when my life is good and the skies are clear, it is harder for me to allow God to captain my ship.  I don't want to hand over controls and risk that He'll steer my ship into new waters or take me away from the bounties I'm currently enjoying.

I hope that I emerge from this storm with greater ability to give God control over my life in all circumstances. He has a better vantage point than I do, and I know he will get me through whatever type of weather may come.  "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)

Love,

Mommy