I wonder if you’ve ever heard the name BNI Haralson. He was the captain of a Viking ship in 1986 ad he crossed the Atlantic on the way to visit his father in Greenland, but his ship got pummeled by waves and he went off course getting lost. After the storm was over, he found land, but this was not Greenland, but the coast of North America.
BNI decided not to get off his ship ‘cause he was anxious to visit his father. So he turned around and sailed back. Several years later, he told his friend Leaf Erickson about the journey. Well, Erickson decided to retrace Binny’s trip and became the first European to ever set foot in North America. Most people today.
Have heard of Leaf Erickson, but hardly anyone knows about Beni, Harson, the Viking, who could have become a world famous explorer. All he had to do was get off the boat. I feel like this is true for most of us. We are frustrated with some part of our life and we pray for change, but oftentimes we don’t approve of the changes, or I could say we don’t approve of the opportunities that are presented to us.
We fail to realize. That there’s a thin line between risk and opportunity, and oftentimes they’re one and the same. In First Corinthians, it says there is no visual likeness between the seed and the plant. You can never guess what a tomato would look like by looking at the tomato seed, but we plant in the soil and what grows out of it don’t look anything alike.
The dead body that we bury in the ground and the resurrection body that comes from it will beat. Dramatically different like Leaf Erickson. I hope that when the opportunity for change presents itself, you will take that leap of faith, that you’ll step off that boat, look towards the unbridled wilderness, and remind yourself that nothing changes if nothing changes.
This has been everyday miracles by hope, mindfulness, and prayer.
In the year 1818, a 26-year-old Catholic priest by the name of Joseph Moore was preparing for the Christmas Eve service at his church in the Austrian Alps. And while cleaning up the church in preparation, he found out that his organ had broken. This was not good. I mean, here’s this young guy that is probably new to this church.
If you’ve ever gone through art history class, you’re probably familiar with a painting called The Light of the World. It was painted by the British artist Holman Hunt, and hangs in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. It’s one of the most iconic religious paintings in history. The painting depicts Jesus standing outside of a small, dilapidated cottage.
I was recently listening to the U2 album, all that you Can’t Leave Behind, and I came across a song called Grace. The lyrics say this, grace takes the blame, covers the shame, removes the stain, but once was hurt, but once was friction. What left a mark? No longer stings because grace makes beauty out of ugly things.
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