When I was little, maybe 10-years old, I borrowed a neighbor’s rowboat and rowed out to fish in the lake. After a while, I looked up at the shoreline and didn’t recognize where I was anymore. I had drifted quite a distance from our family cabin. I had to work hard rowing against the current to get back safely to shore and our cabin.
You see, when I stopped rowing, I started drifting.
The same thing is true in our lives. When we stop growing, we start drifting.
Drifting is a Terrible Thing
Nearly a century ago, in 1928, a young songwriter named Charles E. Moody wrote a gospel song called Drifting Too Far from the Shore. In this song, Moody highlighted the danger of Christians drifting away from Jesus. Accordingly, he described drifting as a terrible fate and exhorted the believer to turn back to Jesus, where the mercies of God await.
Out on the perilous deep,
Where dangers silently creep,
And storms so violently sweep,
You are drifting too far from the shore. (Chorus)
Today the tempest rolls high,
And the clouds overshadow the sky,
Sure death is hovering nigh,
You are drifting too far from the shore. (Chorus)
Why meet a terrible fate,
Mercies abundantly wait,
Turn back before it’s too late,
You are drifting too far from the shore. (Chorus)
Chorus
Drifting too far from the shore,
You are drifting too far from the shore (peaceful shore),
Come to Jesus today, let him show you the way,
You are drifting too far from the shore.
Our Own Drifting
I realized there are many ways we are prone to drift in our own lives as I thought about the lyrics of Moody’s song. We drift spiritually, from our purpose, from our relationships, and even in our occupations.
Spiritually
There are stories throughout the Old Testament about the Israelites, God’s chosen people, who drifted away from Him. When things were going well, they became lax in their worship of God, and subsequently, they drifted away from God.
We do the same thing today. We go through cycles where we are intentional about growing in our spiritual life; our prayer life is rich and rewarding, we are reading the Bible, and worshipping regularly.
Then, ever so slowly, we begin to drift. We skip our prayer time to get to a meeting. We don’t make time to read God’s Word. We skip church because we don’t like a particular pastor.
We drift spiritually.
Purpose
The Bible says God calls each of us and that He has a specific purpose for each of us.
As new believers, we are all excited about diving in and doing the work God has called us to do. We give it all we have for the glory of God.
But after a few years, our enthusiasm wanes. We decide not to go on a short-term mission trip this year because a vacation at the beach seems more fun. We skip choir practice because we want to get some extra sleep. We stop volunteering because, well, someone else will do it.
We drift from our calling.
Relationally
Have you watched a young couple in love? They hold hands and smile and gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes for no particular reason. Conversations go on for hours about every little amazing thing in their lives.
Then, years pass, and the handholding stops. Conversations become reduced to discussing what’s for dinner and who forgot to take out the trash. They each have their own interests but don’t even share those with each other.
We drift relationally.
Occupation
When I was a young sales manager, I had a sales representative named Gary. Gary had been in sales for 20-years. We used to say Gary had one year of experience, which he had repeated 19 more times. You see, Gary learned how to sell pretty effectively in his early days, but then he stopped growing. Consequently, he was drifting through his career.
Many of us are in jobs, which we don’t care for and don’t feel appreciated. We feel like we are taken for granted in our jobs. So, we just put in our time, year after year, as we look forward to that magical day when we can set the job aside and retire.
We drift in our jobs.
The Antidote to Drift
The antidote to drifting is to always grow.
Hence, you will not drift spiritually, in your calling, relationally, or in your job, if you are continually growing.
In my experience, spiritual growth is the key. If I am growing spiritually, I am less susceptible to drifting in other areas.
If I am growing closer to God, I am more aware of the purpose God has for me, and I am anxious to fulfill it. The closer I am to God, the closer I feel to my wife and the people I love. When I am growing spiritually, I am excited to do my best at work as if I am working for the Lord (Colossians 3:23).
So, pay attention to your health in each of these areas. Develop a plan to grow as a way to avoid the danger of drifting.
The writer of Hebrews said, “…we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it” (Hebrews 2:1). This was the mistake the Israelites made. They drifted away from God, and that is a terrible fate.
So, don’t let it become ours!
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Have you experienced a time of drifting in your life? What did you do?
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Category: Personal Development | Character
