Barnacles - Monday Morning Verse

By
Sidney Lanier

                        I
My soul is sailing through the sea,
But the Past is heavy and hindereth me.
The Past hath crusted cumbrous shells
That hold the flesh of cold sea-mells
    About my soul.
The huge waves wash, the high waves roll,
Each barnacle clingeth and worketh dole
    And hindereth me from sailing!

                       II

Old Past let go, and drop i' the sea
Till fathomless waters cover thee !
 For I am living but thou art dead ;
Thou drawest back, I strive ahead
    The day to find.
Thy shells unbind! Night comes behind,
I needs must hurry with the wind
    And trim me best for sailing.

Barnacles are small little crustaceans, in the crab/shrimp family that will stick to pretty much anything they come in contact with. They commonly attach themselves to the undersides of sailing vessels. They produce a fast-curing cement and, according to the National Ocean Service, it is one of the most powerful natural glues – with a tensile strength of 5,000 pounds per square inch.

Ships are built to sail through the water and cut through the waves the least resistance. When barnacles attach to the bottom of the ship it creates drag and resistance. The U.S. Navy spends over "$50 million a year just in fuel costs due to drag. It’s estimated that a newly painted destroyer would lose 2 knots of speed every six months if not scraped and cleaned — and this doubles in tropical waters."

If fact, it is estimated that barnacles cost around $7.5 billion in additional fuel costs due to the added drag. It adds more weight, much more resistance, and it makes it harder and more costly for the captain to get to his final destination. The poem compares barnacles on a ship to memories of the past that can drag us down and keep us from moving on in our life. It reminded me of what Paul wrote to the church at Philippi.

Philippians 3:13-14  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Whether those things Paul thought about were good memories or bad doesn't really matter. You cannot change the past and you cannot live off the past. You cannot press forward if you are living in the world of yesterday. What we have before us as God's people, is greater than anything that could be behind us.

Are you crippled by the "barnacles" of shameful memories? Stuck in the past because of some sin or failure? Don't you understand that the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sins? You are clean and pure in Christ. While you won't escape all the consequences of sin in this life, you stand white as snow before God. You are hidden in Christ. Have faith in the saving blood of Jesus and press on. Paul was a hated man. He was hated by the Jews, hated by false teachers, hated by other churches, even hated by some of the churches he pastored. The memories of past hurt, past sins, past failures didn't cripple Paul in the service for the Lord today. The Lord's mercies are new every morning and in the light of God's love, God's sovereign plan, and God's providential care, Paul pressed on. If you have dealt with your sin - if you have come to Christ, confessing your sins and asking forgiveness and done what you can to make it right with others (if you sinned again others as well); know that you are forgiven and rest in the grace of Christ Jesus.

Are you slowed by the good memories of the past? You cannot live off the past and expect the past devotions and past service to bless your soul. You may not be able to do as much as you could, or your life may be drastically different than it was. Paul's counsel (from prison, no less) was to press on. Paul could have thought about the good ole' days when he was free to roam the roads, preaching the gospel as the Lord had led. 

No, Paul had to press on. He did what he was able to do, where God had placed him. There was no "going backwards" with Paul. If anyone could have lived off past service, it would have been Paul. But if nothing else, he would preach to the guards, write epistles, pray for saints. He pressed on. Maybe you cannot do what you used to do. In God's providence he has changed the scope of your life or time has just taken a toll. Do what you can do now, and press on at the pace you are able. Don't live in the past. Scrape the barnacles from the ship and sail on.

Old Past let go, and drop i' the sea
Till fathomless waters cover thee !
 For I am living but thou art dead ;
Thou drawest back, I strive ahead