Sailing in Circles

On May 31st 2020, the oil tanker Willowy, was sailing in the South Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa. All of a sudden it started turning in circles. Other ships in the vicinity started to do the same thing and were in danger of converging. At first the ship’s officers thought that it was strong tides pushing the ships around, but there was no evidence of strong tides that day in that area. Then they thought some agency or country were messing with their ship’s GPS systems. Apparently, this had been noticed before in the South China Sea, but they were very far from there. The Willowy had been using a Gyrocompass which detects true north, and allows the officers onboard to determine where they are headed, and steer a course to it. If that fails the ship will go around in circles.

The European Space Agency reckons the earth is in a magnetic field reversal, where over a period of centuries the north and south poles will reverse themselves. Because it will take a long time for that to complete, it means during this period the magnetic field signals will be weak and not so reliable. Modern ships have other navigational means at their disposal, so the Willowy problem was rectified, and it reached its destination.  Be that as it may, rightly or wrongly, the lesson here for us is, make sure your life has fixed points to enable you to navigate your way ahead.

Sailors of old used the North Star to set their course aright. Even astronauts today, if their spacecraft fails to navigate by their sophisticated telemetry, can resort to lining up with the stars. The stricken Apollo 13 had to use this old school method to guide them home. At one time I, and another dozen or so men, used to go out in a hired boat at night, away off the coast of Larne to do some fishing. The boatman knew the tides well and where the fish shoaled. He would take us out to where the fish were and let her drift along the tides after the fish. Then he would start the engine again and go back to the same spot and let her drift again. I noticed each time he did this he looked away to two lights on the shore and used them as a fixed point to navigate his way. 

Here is a fixed point the writer to the Hebrews gives us. Hebrews 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith…” Jesus is our Pole Star, our True North. He’s our fixed point. He will never move. He will always be a reliable guide for life’s journey. He’s the author of our faith, and the finisher also. If we allow Him to be our starting point He will be our finishing point. There are strong tides that would want to sweep us off course. But Jesus is the one we keep our eye upon to stay on the chart He’s prepared for us. Without Christ our lives would simply be like the Willowy, going around in circles.

In the words of that great 18th century Welsh preacher, William Williams, Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah Pilgrim through this barren land; I am weak, but Thou art mighty;  Hold me with Thy powerful hand.

- Pastor David Goudy