Disturbed!

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we have dreamed too little, when we arrive safely because we have sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity; and in our efforts to build a new Earth, we have allowed our vision of the new heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery; where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars. We ask you to push back the horizons of our hopes; and to push into the future in strength, courage, hope, and love."

-Sir Francis Drake, explorer and naval pioneer during the Elizabethan era

I found this quote by Sir Francis Drake yesterday while looking for something gripping to add to the weekly church newsletter. It gripped me! How often are our dreams about living the good life, the American "dream", and not about our lost loved ones and neighbors giving their lives to Christ, embracing the cross, and finding victory in Him? How often do we sail through safe "waters" so that we don't "rock the boat" with the Truth? How often are we so distracted by all of our stuff that fills us up so that we aren't even thirsty for Him any longer?

My prayer is that I would become more "disturbed" by the Lord! That I would venture out onto those wild seas, in faith knowing that He is the one controlling them. That I would not remain in the comfortable safety of the lukewarm and apathetic, but dare to boldly venture out into the storm, my hand in His. That I would forget those things that moths and rust destroy, and lose myself in what is eternal.