“The Lord rescues all who are discouraged and have given up
hope.” ~ Psalm 34:18
Jonas woke to the sounds of waves
gently crashing the shoreline. He loved
ocean breezes. Oddly though, he was
covered in sand and a wet blanket. Then
he remembered the violent waves . . . the frantic sinking . . . the exhausting
swim – then darkness.
He’d set out solo, ignoring storm warnings and looking for
adventure. Somehow, he’d managed to
survive. Jonas studied his surroundings;
there were no signs of civilization. He
hadn’t a clue where he was.
Slumber came quickly, filled with images of starvation, dehydration
and even animal attacks as slept atop jagged shells. Dreams would occasionally feature a boat or
helicopter providing safe passage off this island. The intense morning sun roused Jonas for the
second time, reminding him that his real life nightmare had only just
begun.
A short hike revealed a fresh water pool and fruits
aplenty. A lucky start he thought. With some materials from the boat’s wreckage
and a few tools, he began erecting a primitive shelter. As the planet’s worst handyman, the structure
provided little more than an emotional boost from the effort itself.
Darkness fell. Heavy
gray, storm clouds rolled in, blocking out the twinkling stars and throwing the
island into a lonely, dreary state. Flames
from a small fire licked the tips of his chilled fingers as he held them over
its warmth, trying to return feeling into his icy joints.
And so it went, days became weeks; weeks became months. Jonas prayed franticly asking God to rescue
him. No one came. Eventually he learned to survive the weather
changes, insect bites, but never the loneliness. Jonas longed for the urban chaos he’d left
behind.
Time was running out.
If he wasn’t rescued soon, he’d die of insanity, alone on this deserted
island. Angrily, he tossed a log into
the fire.
Hot sparks set his grass-lined hut ablaze. The fire rapidly turned his few belongings
into ash. The only things left were the
clothes on his back. Shock turned to
desperation; Jonas dropped to his knees weeping heavily.
“God, how could you let this happen? I’ve prayed for rescue every day for months
and no one’s come. Now everything’s gone
up in smoke! Why Lord, why me?”
Later as he attempted to build a new shelter, he caught
glimpse of a ship coming toward the island. Jonas was rescued. As they headed back toward civilization, he
questioned the captain, “How did you find me?”
The captain responded, “We noticed a column of smoke on the horizon and
decided to check it out. To our
surprise, we found you!”
My God, life throws us challenges, problems,
and disasters. But Your grace is like a
missing sock, we know it will turn up eventually, but sometimes in the
strangest place. A disaster can
sometimes be a blessing in disguise. Amen
