Lord's Day Post......"Good Morning Pastor....Great Weather Today Isn't It?"

                They were easily identifiable as officers on the Titanic....a handful of them....polite and agreeable as they would answer questions...."When are we due to arrive in New York"...."I say....we seem to be going a bit faster today?"....."Excuse me officer....but my stateroom heating does not seem to be working as it should?" After the ship struck the iceberg their duties focused on getting women and children into lifeboats....which was a lot more complicated than it sounds...."Did Captain Smith say....'Women and children only....or women and children first?". 
                The crew was nowhere near adequately trained to lower lifeboats....especially in an emergency. To make matters worse....at first....many people did not want to go into those small lifeboats that might not even make it down to the water. Some people were laughing and chatting on deck....and the band was still playing....what was the hurry? As the ship began to list it was a different story but by then some lifeboats had been launched with a few people in them....and it had even more dangerous to lower lifeboats....particularly since the crew members were getting on-the-job training on the davits.
                So tomorrow is yet another Lord's Day...."Excuse me pastor....beautiful day outside isn't it?"...."I say old chap....that was a rather long sermon today"...."We won't be here next week pastor....we'll be on a Caribbean cruise....that is if there are no hurricanes....ha ha."
                The people are laughing and chatting....and the music is still playing....what's the hurry....where's the emergency? And when that clear and present danger is there....it will unfortunately be....on-the-job training....for we are not preparing for anything right now.
                I had an interesting experience the other day as I had to make a sudden trip to the hospital to visit a man in the emergency room....who as I was told.....could not even talk. I grabbed my Bible and hurried up....planning only on reading to someone who may not be conscious? But as I was walking the halls of the hospital I had the feeling....maybe I was imagining it....that people thought I must be a pastor....carrying one thing only...an obvious Bible. If that were the case....that I was a minister....then I must know God's Word. That's how we look at pastors today....I've heard it often....said in respect...."Oh....he a pastor!"
                Well....as I wrote in a post many years ago....God could use the man cleaning out the pastor's basement drain to tell him what he is missing in God's Word....and the world today. Spurgeon once told the story of a pastor friend....of a church of 200 or 300....how that pastor was overcome with the responsibility of so many souls. Spurgeon told him to buck up....how did the man think that he felt....for he had thousands of souls under his responsibility!
                It appears....unless the Holy Spirit intervenes....that until we hit that iceberg....no more than that....we've hit the iceberg....until the ship starts to list....no more than that....we are listing and rocking now....until the bow of the ship dips under the water....that we will not uncover the lifeboats....or even tell the people to put the life vests on. You see...this ship is unsinkable! Oh yes it may incur damage....and we may have to be towed into port....but actually to sink? Nonsense!
                To those of us who have seen the flooded engine room....and heard the boilers belch....and know that there are no bulkheads to stop the water going from one compartment to another....in reality to those of us who really believe the warnings in God's Word....we can continue to pray for mercy....and individual mercies for we know that we helped bring this catastrophe upon ourselves....and pray also that God might have mercy on these shepherds in the pulpits...and that if God wills it to have mercy upon us....it might begin tomorrow!