It was a beautiful sunny day in summer so Meg and Lil headed for the beach. The salmon fishing season was over and boats were being painted, repaired and stored for the next season. On this lovely afternoon, the beach was mostly deserted. The sun shining on the water made it look like sparkling diamonds, so Meg and Lil thought it would be fun to row to the other side of the creek and back again. Meg’s father’s punt was stored on the beach. (A punt is a deep, sturdy rowboat used by fishermen to ferry nets, supplies and fish between their boats and the shore.) The girls had just hauled the punt to the water’s edge when a fisherman came by. He told the girls that the tide had turned and that a strong current was running out into the bay. He warned the girls that it would be dangerous to row then.
No doubt many of our young readers have been to the beach and built a beautiful sand castle only to have the tide come in and wash it all away. The tide by your favorite beach may only vary a few feet or so, but the tide in the Bay of Fundy where Meg and Lil lived varied 26 feet! (Ask your parents to give you some idea of how high that is. It is probably higher than your house!)
At high tide, the creek would be full of water, and at low tide there would be no water at all. Only the fishing boats would be sitting in the mud! The creek looked pretty full of water to Meg and Lil, so they thought they surely had time for a little row. They started to row across, but when they got out into the channel, the pull of the receding tide was so strong they couldn’t cross it. It turned the punt and started pulling them out to sea. They realized too late that they should have obeyed the kind warning of the fisherman.
The Bible also warns us that the love of the things of this world will take us far from God: “Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts” (Hebrews 4:77Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. (Hebrews 4:7)). Another verse says, “Incline your ear, and come unto Me: hear, and your soul shall live” (Isaiah 55:33Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. (Isaiah 55:3)). “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:2727My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: (John 10:27)). Are you one of His sheep? If not, come to Jesus today. He doesn’t want you to perish but to turn to Him and be saved.
Meg and Lil knew they would be in serious trouble in a small rowboat out in the middle of the bay. They pulled on the oars with all their strength and managed to break out of the current and turn back toward the beach. Trembling and thankful, they pulled the punt back up onto the beach where they found it.
The Lord was watching over them that day in spite of their foolish actions. The Lord is watching over you, too, and is sending you this message. He wants to deliver you from a lost eternity. John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16) says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
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Messages of God’s Love 9/20/2020