The Parable of The Life Preserver

"We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world." - 1 John 4:14

Here's a picture I hope you never get to see in real life. It's a life preserver - mid-flight. If this is your viewpoint of a life preserver in action, you are in some serious trouble, my friend.

There are three aspects of a life preserver's use that are critical to its successful operation.

First is the thrower. Without a strong and accurate throw by the thrower nobody is going to have a good day.

Second, the recipient has to be capable of reaching out to the preserver. Without the desire and ability to be saved, everybody's efforts will be useless.

And lastly, there's the life preserver itself. Unless it is in good shape and ready to be used it could sink or come apart at the seams. It will be useless unless the life preserver is properly taken care of and maintained.

The parable part of this story comes by examining this entire scenario through God's eyes. In life's struggles, God is the always the thrower. Some might say He is also the life preserver and that's true sometimes, but not always. Quite often God uses other people as His life preservers. God uses us to speak to people, to walk along with people who are struggling in life.

The recipient of any life saving effort is usually someone that God has placed in our lives - for a moment, for a season, but always for a reason. When this scenario works perfectly it is a beautiful thing to behold.

Oh, I forgot one aspect to this parable - the rope itself. The rope is love. God's love is always there to save us from ANY situation. And God has promised to never let go of His life-saving love. It is always there.

Notice that the thrower is directly connected to the life preserver. God's love, through His Holy Spirit, makes everything work. Our Christian brothers and sister are the earthly connection to the struggling soul.

Is there someone in your life who is in danger of drowning right now? Tell them about God's life-saving love. All they have to do is to reach out their hand and receive Him into their hearts.

Remember, even after the struggling person reaches out, God is the one that pulls them to Himself. It's a beautiful thing.

Keep a lookout on the horizon in YOUR life. Is someone struggling? Is someone sinking? God has a hold of you. Are you willing to be used to save a life?