Tuesday, March 12, 2013

PRAYER FROM IN THE WILDERNESS

This is a snatch from my novel, IN THE WILDERNESS. The book is not on prayer purse. But real prayer is a part of life.

If I had assumed the Captain would mellow out after the storm, I was mistaken. He never flogged me, but he threatened it repeatedly. I did learn more about sailing on this voyage, and I worked hard to do my duty. It did not take me any time to discover I had little or nothing in common with the other crewmen. And it did not hurt my feelings that they had all decided early on to shun me as much as possible. I started spending any time I had off duty in my hammock with my Bible. I devoured it, praying for God to explain everything I read. I discovered that I could read a passage over and over and God would speak new things to me every time I read it. The violent threats of Captain Daniels helped my praying. I know that sounds strange, but they did. I would go on duty where the Captain was demanding the impossible and threatening the unthinkable. I knew only God could help me. I began to cry out to God between my teeth, every moment I was on duty. I prayed when I felt weak or frustrated or terrified. That was most of the time. I was forced into the habit of praying. And I tried to keep it up, even when I did not have to pray to stay alive. Evidently my prayers were not quite as silent as I had thought. The other crew members seemed to notice. At first they made jokes about my praying. But when they saw I did not really care, they started avoiding me even more.

 Young, David (2013-02-25). IN THE WILDERNESS (pp. 41-42).  . Kindle Edition.

 

 

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