Many years ago, when I was in first or second grade, my parents went to a yard sale. This stands out in my mind because the sale was next to the park where we girls had been playing and it was a Saturday, so my dad was along, too. I can’t envision the woman at the sale, but I do remember she talked a lot. There was a bunch of stuff piled about with no rhyme or reason. I don’t remember my parents buying anything, but we left with gifts: a bunch of Hot Wheels cars and a stack of books from the Cornerstones of Freedom series, a set of books highlighting many events from American history.
I don’t recollect being enthused over the cars, but in the next few years I became enthralled with the books. I almost believe they are what birthed my love of history. Among the titles in our stack were several about ships—The U.S.S. Arizona, The Bonhomme Richard, and Old Ironsides. I read them again and again and again. To this day I feel a little spark of joy when any of these three are mentioned.
Old Ironsides, known formally as the U.S.S. Constitution, is the oldest commissioned warship still afloat in the entire world, remaining sea-worthy since 1797. If you’ve had an opportunity to go see her in Boston, I will admit to a twinge of jealousy. I will limit myself to only one small paragraph here about the wonders of this ship. The hull was constructed with great durability, being about 21 inches thick. The premise of the builders was to create a ship that could outgun what it couldn’t outrun, and outrun what it couldn’t outgun. Her 44 guns successfully defeated four different British ships during the War of 1812, causing the British navy to declare that no ship was to engage with Old Ironsides alone. If you get a chance, read Oliver Wendell Holmes’ poem, also named “Old Ironsides,” which is credited with keeping the ship from being scrapped.
When the U.S.S. Constitution was called into action at the outbreak of the War of 1812, she was to journey from the Potomac River to Annapolis, Maryland, in order to join the rest of the American fleet. In the course of the journey, the captain approached a group of ships, believing them to be American. However, it soon became evident he had stumbled upon five well-manned British ships. This encounter led to a dramatic sea-chase which lasted more than two days. The legend of the U.S.S. Constitution was begun as the crew worked together to successfully outmaneuver the five pursuing vessels.
It was recorded that as the British gained on the ship, the captain instructed the sailors to make the ship lighter. They threw their drinking water overboard and also wet the sails in order to better catch the breeze. Because I am ignorant about actual sailing in spite of my love of the history of certain ships, I was curious how wetting the sails helped to catch a breeze. After a very quick Google search, I learned that the canvas sails used in antiquity were often made of cotton or flax. This woven fabric contained minute spaces between the threads. When the fabric became wet, the fibers would swell together, making the sail able to capture the tiniest bit of wind. The sail also becomes stiffer, which allows it to better hold the shape needed to create lift.
There are days my sails are in need of a good dose of water. Have you been there, too? Those times when it seems that life is stagnant, that you’re not growing or moving forward like you would like to, that you’re stuck in old habits or thought patterns or fears, that the enemy is bearing down behind you and you’re not sure if you have gumption left to outmaneuver them.
What is the water we can apply to our sails today? For me it is prayer. I must have the quiet moments of contemplation, those times of talking to God. Sometimes this happens while driving or taking a walk. Sometimes it’s a moment at my bedside. Sometimes it’s a prayer scrawled in a notebook. There have been times when I’ve felt overwhelmed, and because some of the places where I’ve taught have been connected to the church, I’ve crept into the sanctuary and talked to God right in His House. Those prayers remain some of the most precious to me.
Prayer, constant and honest, can help us to catch the breeze. Spending those moments with our Father can give us the courage to keep going, even when things look hopeless. Sure, there are things we need to throw overboard, too—perhaps our fear of what others will think, the tight hold we have on our own ideas, the hurt feelings we’ve been nursing for far too long—but when we are continually soaking our lives in prayer, it becomes easier to watch those things disappear into the ocean.
Matthew 6:7a directs us to “…enter into thy closet, and
when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret.”
Later, in Matthew, Jesus reminds us to “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into
temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew
26:41). We are all aware that we are surrounded by temptations on every side. Sometimes
people even become a bit down or depressed about the terrible state of things they
see around them. But I don’t think we are meant to live in that kind of gloom.
I believe that if we watch and pray, if we enter into our closet of prayer often, if we talk to God throughout our day, we will find a place of joyful victory. Maybe not perfect victory, for we are human, but we will find our sails begin to stiffen, the gaps where the Evil One would like to get in will begin to swell shut, we will find ourselves no longer stagnating in helpless defeat, but moving forward with the winds of God. Not at our idea of how fast or far we should be traveling, but under His control, trusting Him completely in the journey.
*P.S. As I had my Bible open, I saw this note in the margin near Matthew 11:28 that seemed relevant: “Coming unto Jesus is the answer for every problem. Come closer, My child, to Me.”
