Daily Bread
"We have this hope
as an anchor for the soul,
firm and secure."
(Hebrews 6:19)
The above stained glass window at St. David's depicts the ancient Christian symbol of an "anchor" formed from a cross. This symbol's earliest discovered use was dated around 400 A.D. and found in the Roman catacombs, where the early Christian community literally had to keep their faith underground. Wanting to mark the graves of their loved ones with a sign of their faith and hope, these persecuted Christians felt they needed to disguise the cross in an artistic and symbolical way, so they came up with the symbol of the anchor. But along with being an ancient symbol of Christ and our Christian hope, the image of the "anchor" also carries with meaning from the nautical world, where an anchor for a boat, or ship, provides stability and safety in both calm and dangerous weather by holding the ship securely in one place. In storms, when the waters are tumultuous, the winds are violently strong, and the rains are torrential, the anchor prevents the ship from being tossed and turned by tethering it to the bottom of the sea or ocean. In calmer weather and waters, the anchor keeps the ship from aimlessly drifting off.And during these challenging and confusing times, it's nice to know we have an anchor for our souls - that amidst all of the "storms of life" where we have our "boats" rocked ... in all of the times when we feel tossed and turned by the winds of change, ... through all the periods of "doldrums" we experience where it's easy feel unmoored, adrift, and lost - we are tethered to firm ground. In the words of the old hymn:
When darkness veils his lovely face,
I rest on his unchanging grace;
in ev'ry high and stormy gale
my anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;
all other ground is sinking sand.
This is our faith that gives us the security and strength we need to meet the day, ... and this is our hope that gives us courage and confidence to face whatever tomorrow might bring. So wherever (and through whatever) your "journey through life" takes you, rest assured, ... because we have an anchor for our souls, ... and our anchor holds.
-- Pastor Micah
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