For the men in the... - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2024

And you were like a firebrand plucked from the burning.
Amos 4:11

For the men in the sea rescue service, being too late is an awful thought.

On May 12, 1975, the Sten Trans, a dredger, was on its way to Kiel with a load of gravel. That’s when the weather service issued a warning for the Baltic Sea. A storm was brewing, a high wave hit the ship, it tilted onto its side – and it didn’t right itself. The gravel had started to slide! With every big wave, the ship now sank deeper into the water. A little later, the distress call went out: “Mayday! Listing, threatening to sink!”

Just ten minutes later, the rescue cruiser set sail but it would take over an hour to arrive on the scene. Would it arrive in time? The ride over the waves was hard: it was dark, just after four in the morning, and the spray took away the men’s ability to see. They were about to slow down when the next message came, “Railing already under water, prepare to abandon ship!” So it was full speed ahead!

Still in the dark, the rescuers arrived on the scene and were able to pick up the men who had already climbed into a life raft. At the same time, a helicopter rescued the two who had remained on the Sten Trans. Just as the last man, the captain, disappeared into the belly of the helicopter, the ship capsized and sank. It was a last minute rescue!

Many Christians pray that people who radio SOS for their lives will hear a word from God in time and be saved. It is not that God can come too late – but often people don’t want to accept help, preferring to try to save themselves. But this is doomed to failure.

Are you already saved? Or are you still on a ‘sinking ship’?

Today’s reading: 1 Kings 22:41-54 · John 15:9-17