Gilligan's Island

Last night as I was reading to my wife before we turned the light out, I came to a place where the author was using the scripture from Hebrews 11:11 to enhance the point that he was making.  The last line of the verse really caught my attention and I jotted down a note to myself to review it the next morning during my Bible study time.  This morning after I settled in at my desk and savored a fresh hot cup of Don Francisco Hawaiian Hazelnut medium brew coffee, I turned to Hebrews 11:11b and read, “Abraham trusted that God would keep his promise."  (God’s Word ©)

After having gone through a long and complicated week of Doctor’s appointments for me, crazy reactions to a new medication, dealing with benefit and health issues with my wife, and the upcoming memorial service for my Mom, that scripture was like a cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer afternoon.  I’m not entirely sure why, but the thought of God’s faithfulness to His promises seemed very calming and refreshing.  As I wound down my study today, I ended up at Hebrews 10:35 where the author comments “Therefore do not cast away your confidence which has a great reward.” (NKJV) 

The phrase “Cast Away” caught my attention and I immediately recalled the old United Artist Television sitcom “Gilligan’s Island!”  Okay, so I know that I am dating myself, but how many of you remember that show?  Even though the show was very popular with the 98 episodes that it originally aired from 1964 to 1967, it gained more popularity during the decades of syndication especially in the 1970’s and ‘80’s when it played during the late afternoon hours when multitudes of kids turned it on after school.

It wasn’t necessarily the quirky situations and characters that the show delighted its audiences with that caught my thoughts this morning, but the idea of being a cast away on an uncharted island in the middle of the ocean with no hope of rescue!  On the show, the only thing that people could depend on was the companionship of their fellow shipmates or the somewhat wacky ideas of the professor.

Hebrews 10:35 encourages us to not take on the mentality of a cast away, but instead to toss all of our confidence on the Lord and the truth of His Word which promises “a great reward.”  The promises of His great reward is much more comforting to me than the thought of re-floating the battered and broken “SS Minnow” or building a raft with coconut tree branches or hoping that a passing plane or ship might just happen to spot you as you stand on the beach wildly waving your arms!  NO!  His great reward is as sure as a certified bank draft that just needs to be taken down to the nearest branch and cashed!

So, don’t be like Gilligan and toss out your anchor without a rope attached to it, but tie up the ship of your life to the solid and unmovable anchor of the Word of God.  Put your trust in Him and you’ll never find yourself on a deserted and uncharted island.  Have a terrific week.  Stay in tune to His Word and keep asking yourself… “What am I expecting today?”