The church was packed that Sunday; everyone was excited about the double baptism and wanted to hear about the daring rescue in Next Port. Many non-believers were in attendance as well, curious to hear what happened, as it was all over the news and the radio.
Pastor introduced Father, Brother, and Teenager to the congregation and took his seat. Today was about what the One True Lord did for Father and his family. Brother and Teenager took their seats next to Pastor on the dais as Father walked to the podium.
Father was visibly nervous; he had given many presentations during his working career, but this was the first time he had spoken before a congregation of believers.
Father began by thanking the One True Lord for the mercy and grace He bestowed on him and his family for the rescue of both his sons. He then thanked Pastor, Pastor’s Wife, Warrior, Seaman, the members of the congregation, as well as Minister and the congregation in Next Port for their unwavering support and prayers during a very difficult time. He then gave a brief history of what had transpired over the last several days and how Teenager was rescued from the black ship.
Father paused and looked at the audience; he was amazed that so many people had come to hear what had happened. He took a drink of water. He had never felt so inadequate. Pastor, Warrior, Seaman, Pastor’s Wife, Brother, and Teenager were praying for the One True Lord to give Father the words the people needed to hear.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Father began, “I have a question for all of you here today, but especially for those of you who do not yet have a personal relationship with the One True Lord. My question is this: How do you explain the evil in this world? How you answer that question is very important and determines the path your life will take. It affects everything, whether you realize it or not.”
Father paused and looked at his audience. He knew there were those in the audience who had not yet come to faith; he prayed for the Spirit to provide the words and for their eyes and ears to be opened so they could perceive and understand.
“We all know evil exists; we see evidence of it every day, so how do you explain it? Where does evil come from? Why is evil allowed? How is evil overcome?” Father paused again to let the questions sink in.
“Speaking for myself, I didn’t like the fact that evil existed, but it hadn’t touched me personally, so I ignored it. I allowed myself to become distracted and selfish. I focused on myself, my desires, my career, money, house, cars, and getting ahead in this world. Looking back on my life, I realize that I didn’t want to ask those questions because I didn’t want to deal with the answers. I think I knew on some deep level that if I really started asking these questions and seeking honest answers, it would lead me to change my life. To be quite honest, I didn’t want to change; I was happy with my life the way it was,” Father explained.
Father could tell by the looks on some of the faces in the audience that his words were hitting home. Some were smiling in acknowledgment; others were squirming and shifting in their seats.
“Over the last few days, evil found me. I take that back; evil found my family a couple of years ago, but I was so distracted with myself and my life, so I never noticed. My lack of spiritual leadership in my family caused my oldest son here,” Father said, pointing to Brother, “to join himself to the evil on the dark ships. By the grace and mercy of the One True Lord, he was returned to me, but I was totally unaware of the significance of it. It wasn’t until a few days ago, when my youngest son, Teenager,” Father paused again and pointed to his other son, “was also attracted to the evil of the dark ships and became a prisoner that I finally woke up.”
Tears began to well up in Father’s eyes. He wiped them away and took another drink of water.
“I’m ashamed to admit that it took something as terrible as both of my boys’ lives being at risk for me to wake up. For that, my sons, I am deeply sorry and ask you to forgive me,” Father said as he turned around, looking at both Brother and Teenager.
Both boys stood up and moved toward Father, hugging him and patting each other on the back.
“Love you, Dad,” both boys said as they patted Father on the back.
“Love you, boys, too,” Father replied.
Father turned back around and wiped his eyes again. He paused for a moment. For a fleeting second, he thought he saw the face of Mother in the back of the crowd, but he couldn’t be sure. He continued to stare for a few seconds before continuing.
“So, ladies and gentlemen,” Father continued, “I will challenge you to ask yourself these questions: Where does evil come from? Why does evil exist? How is evil overcome? What is my role in all of this? What can I do to be the change I want to see in this world? If you find, like I did, that you have more questions than answers, then let me challenge you again to seek the one who has the answers, the One True Lord,” Father said, pointing his index finger toward heaven.
“If you seek Him, He will be found by you. He loves you with an everlasting love. He has a plan and purpose for your life. His plans are not to harm you but to give you a hope and a future. Knowing Him and being in a personal relationship with Him will bring meaning and purpose to your life. He alone can satisfy the ache in your heart and provide answers to all the questions you have. He alone can help because He overcame evil with good,” Father paused, looking at the audience. “But if you feel you need guidance and direction, seek out a body of believers, whether here or somewhere else. Seek out believers who have walked with the One True Lord, who have studied His Word. They can help you on your journey,” Father explained.
He paused once again, searching the crowd to see if Mother was there. He thought he caught a glimpse of a woman quickly exiting the church. He could have sworn it was Mother.
Father continued, “I will charge you today, as Joshua charged the children of Israel in the book of Joshua, chapter 24, verses 14 through 15 (NIV):
“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Father then said, “As for me and my house, we have chosen to serve the One True Lord.”
O Lord of the oceans,
My little bark sails on a restless sea,
Grant that Jesus may sit at the helm and steer me safely.
Suffer no adverse currents to divert my
heavenward course.
Let not my faith be wrecked amid storms and shoals.
Bring me to harbor with flying pennants,
hull unbreached,
cargo unspoiled.1
1 . “Vogage,” in The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, ed. Arthur Bennett (Carlisle, The Banner of Truth Trust).