My Anchor Holds

Hebrews 6:19 "This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast." 

I was reminded today of an old hymn that we used to sing in church years ago, "Will Your Anchor Hold In The Storms of Life?"---- or some hymnals call it "We Have An Anchor". As I laid down to rest this afternoon I started thinking about some of the lyrics to that great old hymn:

Will your anchor hold in the storms of life,

When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?

When the strong tides lift and the cables strain,

Will your anchor drift, or firm remain?

Refrain

We have an anchor that keeps the soul

Steadfast and sure while the billows roll,

Fastened to the Rock which cannot move,

Grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love.

It is safely moored, ’twill the storm withstand,

For ’tis well secured by the Savior’s hand;

And the cables, passed from His heart to mine,

Can defy that blast, thro’ strength divine.

A few years ago, Walt and I went to Sanibel Island, FL on vacation and I was out in the ocean just floating (and dozing off) on an air mattress.  After awhile, I opened my eyes to find that I had drifted way down the shoreline -- quite a ways down the beach from where I originally was. It didn't take any energy for me to "drift" down the coast, but it took a WHOLE LOT of energy to paddle my way back to where I needed to be -- working against the ocean current.

The same thing is true about my spiritual life.  It is so easy to start drifting.  I can start out strong and in no time, drift away from where I know I need to be. I start not reading my Bible as much as I used to, or maybe I'm not praying as much as I used to.  I have seen it happen in my own life.

When we drift, we are not stagnant.  We continue to move, but sometimes in an unhealthy direction. Have you ever noticed that when we drift it is usually DOWNstream?

How does the drifting occur?

We are no longer at the helm.

We are no longer on guard.

We are no longer cautious about what is going on around us.

We are no longer anchored.

Hebrews 2: 1 "For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it."  

Without an anchor, our boat that is "parked" will begin to drift. Unless I am anchored in the Word I will begin to slip away from a close relationship with God. That slippage can be so gradual that I may not even notice it until I am SHIPWRECKED.

It is a fact that we all face storms in life.  The storms come in many different forms - the tornado of failing health, the cyclone of financial reversal, the tsunami of the death of a loved one, the tropical storm of the loss of a job, or the hurricane of a failed marriage. But one thing is for sure, the storms of life will prove the strength of our anchor.

And the cables, passed from His heart to mine,

Can defy that blast, thro’ strength divine.

Are the cables of my heart fastened to the cables of His heart?

How about you?  Are you fastened to the Rock which cannot move?