The Party Ship, HMCS Sunny Ways, left Montreal harbour for Ottawa on October 19, 2015, amid confetti and balloons, smiles all around, and a bold announcement that “Canada is back!” after 8 years of Canada being steered by the warship HMCS Cold and Competent.
Our Captain at the helm of the new party ship was a young, brash, and confident man, who promised that life aboard this ship was going to be far more fun, far more equal, and far more environmentally friendly. This was a different sort of ship. Unlike the warship, this party ship was said to be made of glass, that all those looking in would be able to see what the inner-workings of the ship looked like, and how utopian the whole endeavour was going to be.
It didn’t take too long, however, before the HMCS Sunny Ways began taking on water.
Slowly at first, but it started with an ‘inadvertent’ sideswipe to iceberg in the shape of a breast. Apologies all around, no harm, no foul. That same year, however, the Captain decided to accept an invitation to a Port-of-Call that was out-of-bounds. The hole in the boat became larger, and suddenly the glass sides of the ship appeared to be taking on an abundance of barnacles and sea-sludge.
The passengers on the ship didn’t seem to notice, for a time. The wine was still flowing, the caterer was still finding food, prices were still reasonable, the bilge pumps were managing, and the Captain was still as handsome as ever.
But then, something changed.
The ship kept hitting icebergs, bigger and sharper than the ones before it. The bilge pumps started to sputter. The dirty water started to gather, to fill up the ship. Not many noticed at first, except those closest to the bottom of the boat. Some passengers started inquiring as to “Who was steering this
ship?” and “Why do we keep hitting icebergs?” The Captain became indignant at those who dared question his ability to Captain the ship, and called them nasty names like “racist, disgusting misogynists”, all the while his executive officer stood beside him, nodding in approval.
But the boat kept taking on more and more water. After 8 years of partying on HMCS Sunny Ways, people starting noticing the stench of the ship, and how un-transparent it was, and how the wine had stopped flowing, and no one could afford the caterer anymore, except of course, the Captain and the
EXO. The cries of those in the lower reaches of the ship had become deafening, and could no longer be ignored by those in the penthouses.
The passengers were drowning, starving, and dying, and like the
pounding heart in Poe’s short story, slogans and lies could no longer hide reality. Something was
seriously wrong.
You may feel like one of those who are drowning in the ‘goodness’ of our government. I have seen numerous social media stories of people who are at the end of their proverbial rope, not knowing how they can afford to live. Energy costs are through the roof, inflation has driven prices of everything sky-high. A single-income home is almost impossible in today’s Canada. Those that once supported our federal government have largely woken up to the reality that policies driven by ideology have crippled this nation, and will continue to beat it down for years to come.
While I find this unacceptable, this is not my major concern. My major concern is: How are you, as a Christian, dealing with the realities of our current time?
We can easily slip into the Sea of Despond, wanting badly for a change of government. But we must never accept the lie that governments can fix what ails us. Sin is what ails us, and to sin on a national level as Canada has invites discipline or punishment from the Lord of Lord’s and King of Kings.
Joseph de Maistre once said “Every nation gets the government it deserves.” And while we can all agree that every human government will fall short of God’s calling, the farther away a government moves from the wisdom and justice of God’s law, the worse off society will be. The last 8 years should prove this assertion, but because of our collective sin, we will learn nothing.
A nation can turn things around, but it must start with the church. The church must repent of her idolatry, her pragmatism, her whoring and wandering. The church must first seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33). Then, and only then, will a nation turn and hear and be saved.
Finally, as desperate as times can seem at the moment, we need to keep two things in mind.
First, God has graciously given us a body to lean on and rely on. It is called the church. Gal. 6:2 states, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” The church is meant to be a body that supports one another, in the good times and the bad. It is a body of believers who will pray for you,
weep with you, celebrate with you, and assist you in your time of need. This is what we are called to do. If you don’t belong to a church that practices these things, you might want to rethink what church you are attending.
Second is the sovereignty of God. Proverbs 16:9 states “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” Psa. 37:13 states “but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming.” God is in control, even of the wicked men and women in power. They will either come to repentance, or they will perish with the wicked. God is just, and vengeance is His. No matter how down and out a Christian feels, a healthy spirit sings out to God, “Tho He slay me, I will worship Him.” (Job 13:15).
A helpful hymn for those that need it:
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Refrain:
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!
And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.
God bless you,
Pastor Chris
Covenant Presbyterian Church 