Skip to main content

Anchor House - Week 24 - Worship

This past week we had the chance to hold a worship service on a ship. For me it was a first. I love worship services and preaching. Worshiping on a ship with a group of guys who haven’t had the chance to share in corporate worship for months made it even more meaningful. Huddled up in the crew’s lounge space, we sang worship songs together (thanks to our intern, Gabe, and his willingness to play guitar and sing), shared in the word, prayed, partook in the Lord's Supper, and shared in a message. 

The message I shared centered around the fact that God is always with us. It is something I think it is important to remind seafarers. Their time on the ship can be physically and mentally arduous. The solitude can be overwhelming. One of the blessings of being a follower of Jesus is that we are never alone. God is with us.

Paul asks, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” in Romans 8:35. He is asking can anything separate us from the love of Jesus? Is there anything we could do that would make us untouchable by our God? In response he says, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39). Simply put, there is nothing we can do that would cause God to leave us. He is always with us. Even when we run from Him and ignore Him, He is there. He is waiting for us.

All we have to do is acknowledge Him. All we have to do is allow him to be our Lord. All we have to do is trust and follow Him. Chances are if you are reading this, you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. But if that is not the case, I invite you to acknowledge the God who loves you so greatly that He has never left you. Even in your darkest days, He is with you. You never have to be alone again.  

Be blessed and be a blessing,
Matt

Comments

  1. Amen Matt - Words to live by 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Anchor House Week 31 - NAMMA

The first week of August, I had the chance to attend the North American Maritime Ministry Association (NAMMA) Conference. NAMMA is an ecumenical, Christian association of individuals and affiliated organizations involved in maritime ministry throughout North America, including the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. I had the privilege of attending the conference with our summer intern, Gabe. For both of us it was the first time we had the chance to be a part of the conference. I enjoyed getting to meet so many individuals who serve the Lord across the globe. Each of us serves at different ports and in unique ways. The exchange of ideas was both enjoyable and informative, especially for me as the new guy. Each of the people I met had a heart for the seafarer and the challenges they face. Their hearts poured out to show the love of Jesus to the men and women aboard the vessels that visit their respective ports.   One of the highlights of the trip was meeting one

Anchor House Week12: Constant

I've gotten almost a week behind on my reflections from Anchor House. It seems there just isn't enough time in the day.  The way these blogs come together is different from week to week.  Some weeks God puts a message clearly on my heart. Others it feels like a struggle to put "pen to paper".   This week was one of those that I knew exactly what I'd write about. However, each day passed and I missed the opportunity. You see, I write best in the mornings. Not sure if it's the limited distractions, a product of my habit of practicing my spiritual disciplines in the morning, or something else entirely. Most of my afternoon writing is intelligible and requires numerous edits.  In the AM, however, they seem to make more sense.   What's funny is that as I am writing, I am feeling God moving.  He's moving from what I thought I was to write about to what He wants me to share. These shifts and changes are a part of the shipping industry.  Things hap

King of the Jews

Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head. They clothed Him in a purple robe and went up to Him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped Him in the face. Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, “Look, I am bringing Him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against Him.” When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!” As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw Him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!” But Pilate answered, “You take Him and crucify Him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against Him.” The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law He must die, because He claimed to be the Son of God.” When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, and he went back inside the palace. “Where do you come from?” he asked Jesus, but Jesus g