On April 14, 1912 at 11:40 p.m., the RMS Titanic, a massive luxury cruise ship with 2,224 people on board, collided with a large iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean, sinking in less than three hours. The largest ship in the world at the time, the Titanic was four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City when tragedy struck.
Although warned he was heading into iceberg-laced waters, Titanic Captain E.J. Smith pushed forward at a high speed (22 knots), reportedly seeking to better the crossing time of Titanic’s White Star sister ship, the Olympic. Ironically, he is even reported to have said: “Not even God himself could sink this ship.”
With the deaths of more than 1,500 people, the sinking of the Titanic was one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history, quickly becoming a catalyst for change. The United States Congress held hearings on the casualty that resulted in measures to improve the safety of navigation.
One of the most famous scenes in the 1997 movie “Titanic” was when Rose DeWitt, played by Kate Winslet, was floating on a small door panel, while her lover Jack Dawson, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, was in the water and holding on to the door panel. The panel was large enough to hold Rose, but not both of them. In the final scene, Rose and Jack expressed their love for each other, just before Jack succumbed to hypothermia, slipped beneath the waves, and perished. Rose was then rescued by a lifeboat sent by another ship that finally arrived on the scene.
Important lessons from the sinking of the Titanic are many, including the importance of paying attention to danger signals in our lives (90% of icebergs are underwater and cannot be seen), and the fact that serious crises, and eventually death, come to every person, rich or poor, black or white, male or female, in a time not of our choosing.
But most importantly, we believers in Christ are in Christ’s life boat – His Eternal Life Boat, and yet we have family, friends, and acquaintances who are in the icy waters. If we don’t reach out to them and help them get in the Eternal Life Boat, they will perish and be gone forever. So let us reach out to them and all who the Lord brings across our path with the love and truth of Christ, for time is short, tomorrow is not guaranteed, and eternity is forever.
To God be the glory
Although warned he was heading into iceberg-laced waters, Titanic Captain E.J. Smith pushed forward at a high speed (22 knots), reportedly seeking to better the crossing time of Titanic’s White Star sister ship, the Olympic. Ironically, he is even reported to have said: “Not even God himself could sink this ship.”
With the deaths of more than 1,500 people, the sinking of the Titanic was one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history, quickly becoming a catalyst for change. The United States Congress held hearings on the casualty that resulted in measures to improve the safety of navigation.
One of the most famous scenes in the 1997 movie “Titanic” was when Rose DeWitt, played by Kate Winslet, was floating on a small door panel, while her lover Jack Dawson, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, was in the water and holding on to the door panel. The panel was large enough to hold Rose, but not both of them. In the final scene, Rose and Jack expressed their love for each other, just before Jack succumbed to hypothermia, slipped beneath the waves, and perished. Rose was then rescued by a lifeboat sent by another ship that finally arrived on the scene.
Important lessons from the sinking of the Titanic are many, including the importance of paying attention to danger signals in our lives (90% of icebergs are underwater and cannot be seen), and the fact that serious crises, and eventually death, come to every person, rich or poor, black or white, male or female, in a time not of our choosing.
But most importantly, we believers in Christ are in Christ’s life boat – His Eternal Life Boat, and yet we have family, friends, and acquaintances who are in the icy waters. If we don’t reach out to them and help them get in the Eternal Life Boat, they will perish and be gone forever. So let us reach out to them and all who the Lord brings across our path with the love and truth of Christ, for time is short, tomorrow is not guaranteed, and eternity is forever.
To God be the glory