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	The Anchor Holds


He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established, he shall not be afraid... Psalm 112:7,8

...I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. II Timothy 1:12

	...Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved. Acts 27:31. That was Paul's admonition to those on the ship with him. They had already cast anchors out of the stern; they were in fear of their very lives and "wished for the day" (daybreak). Yet, Paul told them, "Stay on the ship or die." Why? Because he knew The Anchor! He knew in whom he had believed! We are so often beset by storms of life--various trials that we all endure. So many times we are tempted to "throw in the towel, give up the ship", but let me tell you now, The Captain of Our Salvation is ALWAYS aware of our circumstances. And while we may not know the plans He has for us, HE DOES! You see, Paul could stand there in full confidence of whom he knew and admonish them to "stay on board". He had heard from God via a heavenly messenger:
And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship. For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Therefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me. Acts 27:22-25. Did you see it there? Who did Paul identify himself as? God's ...whose I am, and whom I serve...! Paul knew in whom he had believed: ...I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me. Therein lies the secret--not only did he know who he was (a servant of God), he knew in whom he had placed his trust, and he accepted what God told him as absolute FACT! He made his declaration of faith DURING THE STORM, not after peace prevailed! Can we do that? I said, Can we do that?

I have wrapped up gifts for my children at various times and without fail, they've tried to guess what was in them. I just kept on smiling--I already knew what they were! I was confident in what I knew--they had told me what they wanted, and I had complied. Sometimes, they'd get really upset because I wouldn't let them know before the appointed time what the package contained. "IF you loved me..." or "Well, if you won't give it to me NOW, I just don't want it..." Sound familiar? For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13. Glory to God! My hope is anchored to that Solid Rock Foundation, Jesus Christ. He Who is ...able to do exceeding abundantly ABOVE ALL that we ASK or THINK, according to the power that worketh in us... Ephesians 3:20. Where is our Power Source? Whose power do we have working in us? I said, Whose power do we have working in us?? Our own? The world's? The Holy Ghost? The fourth chapter of Mark tells us that as Jesus and the disciples crossed the sea, Jesus was ...in the hinder part of the ship, asleep* on a pillow...* We're told that ...there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship... The others on the ship went to Jesus, awoke Him and said (now get this:) "Master, carest thou not that we perish?" Sounds like us today, doesn't it? "God, don't you love me anymore?" And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, "What are ye so fearful? how is it ye have no faith? Mark 4:36-40.

We have a two-fold problem: (1) Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things... James 3:4,5. The wrong person is at the helm, and our rudder is wild!! On WHOM do we have our focus? Just *WHO IS* the Captain of our Salvation? (2) We've got a full agenda, which does NOT include prayer, praise, or study. Is it any wonder that we don't know what to believe? Is it any wonder that we are powerLESS?? The Word of God instructs us That we henceforth be NO MORE children, TOSSED TO and FRO, and CARRIED ABOUT WITH EVERY WIND OF DOCTRINE... Ephesians 4:14. We don't pray for wisdom, we don't praise to declare our faith in victory through Him, we don't study to show ourselves approved! And then we wonder why we are living defeated, powerLESS lives? We're anchored to EVERYTHING BUT Jesus Christ! So many in today's world, including "professed Christians", have addictions (anchors) of all kinds but the right one: one type of drug or another, material possessions, physical relationships. I'm here to tell you: there is ONLY ONE anchor which will hold through the storms of life: we must be anchored to that SOLID ROCK FOUNDATION, JESUS CHRIST!! So who are we listening to? What are we seeing? Are we looking unto the Author and Finisher of our faith, or can we see no further than the possibilties of losing our material possessions, our health, a friendship, alienation of affection of a loved one? To whom, to what are we anchored? We can make the same declaration that Paul did: "Be of good cheer; for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me," IF we are anchored to Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. If every plan we have fails, if everything we own falls, if all our plans "go under", I implore you, Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Romans 8:35. In order to weather the storms of life, we MUST be able to say: For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38,39. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26.

When we are lonely, When the job is gone, When our business folds, When the cabinets are bare, When the paycheck ain't there, When the mail doesn't come, When the phone doesn't ring, When the children don't visit, When our loved one turns away, When the doctor says it's hopeless, When I have to bid good-bye from this existence, Glory to our never-failing, unchanging God,

	We may be battle weary, our mast broken, our sails tattered, but that anchor will hold! But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. I Corinthians 15:57-58.
For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. II Corinthians 4:16-18. Whether I limp into port on a broken battered vessel, or float to the shore on a board from that vessel, God will see me safely established. You see, I'm telling you:
(all emphasis on scriptures, such as bold, underline or uppercase, is mine) "The Anchor Holds" (article only) Copyright © 2000 by Patricia Sikes. All Rights Reserved.


The Anchor Holds as sung by Ray Boltz

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