Just a short time ago, I stood alongside a great battleship and watched the sailors going about their duties. Some were getting settled in their hammocks for the night, and others seemed to have lots of work to do. There is always something fascinating to most boys about sea stories, so I shall tell you a story that happened in the China Sea.
It happened a long time ago. The ship with its crew of brave sailors was homeward bound when she ran into a fearful tempest. The men who were not on duty were in their berths below, but they were not sleeping, for it looked as though they were never going to see the light of another day. The angry scream of the wind and crashing of the waves on deck made the bravest of them tremble for their lives. Many a boy and many a man can talk bravely and act quite carelessly when all goes well, but when eternity seems to be right at hand then serious thoughts come crowding in. And so it was the night of the tempest. Many of the sailors were crowded into a room below, when into the group walked a young officer.
“Well, men, I’ve come down to read to you. The Word of God is the same in a storm as in a calm, and always does us good.”
The men could see that his heart was filled with peace and his face was filled with joy. They listened eagerly while he read to them, and told them of the love of the Lord Jesus in shedding His precious blood on the cross to meet the need of poor sinners. He talked and sang and prayed, and all the time his face was filled with sunshine and joy.
Toward morning the storm abated, the wind lessened and the sun came out. The danger was over, and no serious harm had been done. And I am sorry to say that the very men who were so solemn the night before, seemed as careless as ever now that the sun was shining.
Some years later, that same happy officer was walking along the streets of Singapore, when a man stopped him.
“Sir,” he said “Do you remember the night of the fearful tempest at sea when you read and prayed with the sailors below decks?”
“Yes, I do remember.”
“I was lying in my hammock in fear and trembling. I could not hear a word you said or read, but I could see your face, sir. And when I saw the sunshine of your happiness through the storm, I knew you had something that I needed. For though I have been a sailor for many years, I couldn’t smile that night. Thank God, I was able to get a Bible, and now I too am a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is my Saviour.”
Dear young reader, it may be that the Lord has not yet passed you through anything as terrifying as a tempest at sea. But He is speaking to your soul right now as you read this paper, and He wants to save you.
ML 07/12/1953