Tools of the Trim

Rails and Sails! Last week (July 9th), I posted about my friends’ boat, Glorious Day!

It is a wonderful craft that was smooth on the water and a joy to be in for the day.

This picture was hanging in their cabin.

When I saw this, I loved it. It spoke volumes to me. I will summarize for you here in this post.

Before I get to the summary, here are three links for extra credit:

Rails and Sails

Glorious Day!

Wind in your face?

I found it intriguing that I had blogged about sailing before this post. Back in May 2015, the post, Wind in your face? was posted. Let us find out if anything has changed…

When someone sails, the wind needs to blow. No wind means no progress.

Keeping the sails at maximum efficiency seems to be at the heart of sailing.

Let me make some comparisons. Comparison #1 Wind equals problems.

Yes, there are days that the wind does not blow but those are rare. Wind can affect all areas of life. Everywhere and anywhere, the wind will blow.

Comparison # 2 Life equals sailing.

We all have goals. There are things we want to obtain or achieve. The range of these goals is wide. Spiritual, physical, financial, mental, vocational, or whatever category you want to use: we all have goals.

But like I said earlier, no wind means no progress.

Or, if we use my comparisons, No problems means no progress.

To use a sailing term, we must trim our sails.

Simply, trim means to adjust.

I can’t tell the wind when or where to blow. It does its own thing.

I can’t tell life what to do to me. It will move on regardless of me.

All I can do is adjust my sails.

God promises me the power and strength to do what I need to do. My relationship with God will allow me to “trim” when the wind comes. It could be a minor adjustment or even a new way of thinking.

Continual reading of God’s word and habitual prayer are the tools of the trim.

So just like a sailboat, I can make progress because of the wind, not in spite of it.

Blow wind blow!

Glorious Day!

Sailing, I found, was peaceful. It was a perfect little escape. The weather was terrific and even better, were our host friends, Mike and Michelle.

Glorious Day is the name of their boat.

I also found out that I do not know very much about sailing.

Here are some terms that the average person most likely would not know:

• Luff: The luff is the front edge of the sail between the tack and head.
• Leech: The leech is the aft part of the sail between the clew and head.
• Gybing- When you steer the vessel from a starboard tack to a port tack and vice versa downwind.
• Mizzen sail: A mizzen sail is typically a small triangular sail set on the aft mast of a boat with several masts, like the ketch rig.
• Boom Vang/Rod Kicker: A compression pole is used to tension the boom downwards. 

There are many more but those are some of the more peculiar terms.

Mike and Michelle are awesome! They were gracious hosts to my wife and me.

As we made out from the port, Mike would explain these various terms to me. He would also instruct me to “hold this rope tight”, “crank this lever” or “just sit tight for a minute”.

At one point, I even got to steer the boat! But make no mistake, Mike was and always will be, from the beginning, the captain of the Glorious Day.

After an hour or so, Michelle prepared lunch. So here we are sailing, eating, and talking with friends. As I said, it was a fantastic day!

On this map, the red star is the city of Green Bay. The water that goes up and to the right of the red star is the bay of Green Bay. If you find the town of Little Suamico (just north of Green Bay), that is where we entered the water.

As I recall this little excursion, this thought dominated my mind: Life can be like sailing and God is my captain.

There are times when my Captain tells me to “hold this rope” or “sit down”. He is telling me how to live and how to live right.

The storms of life provide an ample amount of wind for the sails. Is this a good thing or bad? More on this in my next post.

It even feels like I get to pilot the boat on occasion.

Sure, there are terms that I don’t know. Maybe I am not sure of the timing on when (or which) sail to unfurl. So many things are taking place at once.

And the Captain is 100% aware of all of them at any given second in time.

And He will even have a nice meal waiting for you and me!

So grab your life vest and come aboard!

Yes, that is me. I just wanted to be like Bill Murray in What About Bob?

P.S. If you are reading this for the first time, I would recommend going back to the post of July first. It will give some context for the content of this post and also the next couple of months. Click here.

Rails and Sails

Happy 4th of July weekend! You might be purchasing fireworks for the 4th or grilling out today. Eating watermelon and drinking lemonade also go well with many activities. Have a bonfire!

Let this celebration of independence be a safe, relaxing, and fun time for you and yours.

As you could probably tell by the title, this post is not about July 4th, freedom, or even the sweet corn that should be “knee high by 4th of July”.

In May and June of this year, I had the privilege of experiencing Rails and Sails.

The train trip was on Amtrak.

The sailboat voyage was with friends from our church who owned a sailboat. This picture is not their boat but it is similar.

Both of these modes of transportation are very uncommon for me. My wife and I took an Amtrak trip 18 years ago. I don’t even remember if I had been on a sailboat before.

I like doing new and different things. These two trips were both well worth the time and cost associated with each.

Over the rest of the summer, I want to share my experiences with you through this blog.

Perhaps a preview…

Touring Alcatraz Prison

Eating seafood on Fisherman’s Wharf

Looking up at the Space Needle

Seeing the Rocky Mountains

Being lashed to the mast of a sailboat

Being at the geographical center of North America

Playing Cribbage with my mother-in-law

Putting a puzzle together with my kids

Taking another selfie with my wife with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background

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These, and many more, are the substance of my combined experiences with Rails and Sails.

I look forward to taking you along these journeys with me. It will be fun to revisit these memories.

So, as you wait in eager anticipation, recall your own journeys.

I hope they have also been filled with many great people and places.

Thanks for reading!

I now present to you…

One of my favorite parts of performing a wedding ceremony is to present the new couple.

At the wedding, I go through the vows and rings. Usually, some sort of sermon or homily is given. There are readings sprinkled in as well. Then, by the power invested in me…husband and wife…kiss!

I enjoy weddings because they are always happy and joyful!

The very last line I say, after everything else has been done and said, is this:

“It is my honor and privilege to present to you for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs. X!”

Today, however, I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Jospeh and Mary!

Last names were different in Israel 2000 years ago. But their last name is not really important for my purpose here.

I am more interested in their mindset.

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What’s on your mind? What do you think about all day?

When it comes to the almost newlyweds (almost), they could have had one of three different mindsets.

Because of the pregnancy and impending divorce, they could have had a cultural mindset. Society would say get divorced. Cultural norms would tell Joseph to get rid of Mary.

But Joseph and Mary did not have a cultural mindset.

They could have had a conflict mindset. How would these two get married with her being pregnant? What if Joseph dismissed the dreams as mere wishful thinking? Should they move away? Many conflicts would be swirling through their minds.

Nor did they have a conflict mindset.

They did the right things in this rocky start to a life together. They traveled down the right path. God guided and they followed. They possessed a Christ mindset. Despite all of the pressure to go astray, Joseph and Mary obeyed God in their actions. This was God’s plan.

As we looked at before with Just a Simple Carpenter and Treasure and Ponder, Joseph and Mary acted exemplary in times of trial.

It would have been easy to have a cultural or conflict mindset given the circumstances in which they found themselves.

But they possessed a Christ mindset.

So let that be an example to you and me.

Let me circle around to the beginning of this post.

Friends, it is my honor and privilege to present to you, after some 2000 years, Joseph and Mary!

Just a Simple Carpenter

Mary and Joseph. Joseph and Mary. The parents of the God-child.

But they are just people like you and me.

That amazes me.

My last post focused on Mary. Today, Joesph gets the spotlight.

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18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

This block of verses is from Chapter 1 of Matthew. The underlined portions are my doing. These will match the points that I will make about Joseph.

Alright. Ready, set…Go!

1. Joseph had Divorce in his mind. And I agree with him. From his perspective, he was doing the right thing, at least culturally speaking. How difficult would it be to believe that God really made Mary pregnant?! It seems that divorce was his only option. According to the text, he was not mean or vindictive about it. He cared, even loved, Mary and did not want to hurt her. But pregnant…any other news might have been an easier pill to swallow. What was God doing here?
2. Joseph had Dreams in his sleep. Do you dream? Typically, I don’t remember the details of any of my dreams. There have been a few times when I had a dream that was divine. For me, day dreaming is also a thing. I just hope I am not driving at the time! Joseph goes to bed one night, perhaps feeling concerned about his situation. Then, an angel shows up in a dream. The angel speaks and Joseph remembers. I could imagine that he would have been amped-up the next morning! He now had a plan. God had been faithful!
3. Joseph had Discipline in his actions. No doubt there was still some apprehension about Mary. People were bound to rumor and speculate about these two teenagers. But Joseph had discipline enough to follow the orders given to him. If we were to read the rest of the chapter, this dream-followed-by-action pattern would be repeated a few times. God entrusted Joseph with this situation and Joseph passed in exemplary fashion!

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Where Mary treasured and pondered, Joseph had to listen and act.

Two very different approaches.

I really enjoy the creativity of our God when he communicates to us.

There are times to move forward and act upon His word. Other times require solitude and rest.

Whether we relate to Mary or Joseph it does not matter. Just be ready to listen to God.

He just might have something for you.