More Evening Prayers with Chaps

Excellent or Praiseworthy is posted on Monday and Thursday nights.

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care for him?— Psalm 8:3,4

Day One—“Replenishment”

As deep water sailors, we appreciate the unreps who bring us mail, fresh food, and fuel to top our tanks and refresh our stores.

As ships company, we recognize the unreps bring a lot of intentional preparation and sweat equity to deliver the results we enjoy. Stocks are rotated, fuel is filtered and parts get boxed and bundled.

As sailors, we understand the value in these efforts and we tackle them as a team—a team that often looks like a bag of skittles with a very big grey wrapper. It’s been fun to see what gets poured out each day.

Our Heavenly Father, as The Great Shepherd, recognizes our shared efforts and also works to replenish our souls, much as the 23^rd Psalm mentions: He leads us beside still waters, not fast moving or stagnant; He demonstrates the value of a rod and staff to protect our well-being from the enemy of the day and stands watch into the night so that we may rest; He ensures that a replenishment table is prepared in the presence of our enemies, while also anointing our heads with oil.

All of this with one condition—that we identify with His desire to care for us as sheep knowing Him as Lord and Great Shepherd.

Let us Pray: Shepherd of my soul and provider for my deck plates, thank You for the rest and replenishment You bring us each day and for the promises of the next. Help us Lord to rest in Your anointing, as we gather for Your purposes upon our life. May the rod and staff of our Group share in the protection and comfort of all who seek the sound of freedom . . . and may we all hear Your voice while walking through the darker valleys of our days. Amen.

Day Two—“Spirit of the Storms and Upon the Waters”

We can learn much from the waves that wash over our bow and on to our deck. The same waves that wash upon our shore are churned at sea and we get to meet them head on. As we meet them head on, we learn more of God’s power and majesty.

We learn that life is in the storm, as much as the calm. Jonah learned of You among the storms and within its depths. Moses shared You in the parting of waters. Peter learned of You by trying to walk on the waters, or at least for a few steps. As sailors, we get to learn of the seas first-hand. May we learn more of Your depths among the storms of our lives and the calming of our seas.

Let us Pray: Wondrous God, as we gather together and pause during our busy schedule of flight ops and simulations, we invite Your presence and rest in You. As we look ahead, where our journey is long and across many waters, we recognize that in the beginning Your Spirit moved across these waters and gave life to all that followed. Today we embrace Your Spirit, as it continues to move among the waters we sail upon. May Your breath fill us with life anew. Amen.

Day Three—“Look Up”

Not that long ago, sailing was both an art and a way of life.

Commerce and travel alike relied on the known to discover the unknown. Navigators on land and sea relied upon a horizon for discernment and the heavens for their direction. Looking past the known with faith extended their reach. From this reach they were able to grasp the new world, new understandings, much as the Magi of the East came to find the promise of a coming king.

Though much has changed since then, the promise remains the same. When we seek we can find.

Tonight, between your work and your watches, step out of your “box” and look up for a bit. Take a moment for your eyes to adjust and rediscover what enlightens your way.

Let us Pray: Lord, as we escort others through the narrows of the day, may You broaden our horizons again—beyond where our eyes have been focused. As both our eyes and thinking adjust, help us to rediscover the vastness of Your handiwork and our role as part of Your creation. May Your stars become more than wishing or way-points to navigate. May we find ourselves mindful and humble among them. Beneath them, may we also find the rest for our minds and for our souls. Amen.

Day Four—“Altars”

Today we were able to mark a significant point along our journey. We became officially “salty” and able to mark our journey with a new sea service ribbon—or perhaps able to place another star on it.

In Old Testament times, patriarchs like Abraham would pause at similar points along the wilderness journey. At each point of pause he would set up an altar and thank God for the deliverance and protection as he and his family journeyed into the new land. Abraham’s journey, departing from the land of his fathers, was part of acting on God’s promise for his people. Ironically, each altar point along Abraham’s journey became markers for the boundaries of what became the promised land of Israel. And the altar point where Isaac was placed on Mt. Moriah later became Jerusalem’s Temple Mount and the center of Israel.

Our journey is not that different. We have marker points that identify not only where we are, but where we have come from. Just as important, these marker points identify where we are going and who is going with us.

Thank you for being part of that journey with me and safeguarding those with us—and the families back home. Let’s give thanks to God for His deliverance through our journey.

Let us Pray: Father, as we cross this threshold and continue along our journey, we thank you for Your deliverance. May our prayers act as an altar of thanksgiving. May this journey be one of purpose and offer protection for all on board. May the mile markers ahead continue to add meaning and significance to the freedoms we are striving to protect. And may Your presence be found among our deck plates between the thresholds we will cross. Amen.

Questions to Share:

1. Do you look at creation around you or events in your life and think of spiritual lessons, as Chaps does? Share an example of what you have learned from a metaphor.

2. What is a marker point in your life which you have wanted to remember—a time when God protected and led you during a particular time?