When our kids were in 3rd and 5th grade, we decided to go in together with 3 other families to rent a houseboat on Lake Mead outside of Las Vages. All of our kids were with in four years of each other and they all got along great. We had a little 16 foot boat that we skied behind, so we had fun taking turns on the little boat during the day, and slept on the houseboat at night. We piled all our belongings on the houseboat, filled the little boat with kids, and went to find a little cove to park the houseboat from the week, away for all the other people that came to the lake for vacation.
The houseboat was old, and only slept 8 people, so the adults got the beds, and the kids all slept on the roof on lounge chairs. With 15 people on board this small houseboat, as you can imagine, it was very tight quarters. One thing that we had not accounted for was how fast the ‘gray water’ tank would fill up with all these people using the bathroom. Halfway through the week, we needed to go back to the dock and empty the gray water. We didn’t want everyone to have to waste a good part of their day riding on the boring houseboat, when they could stay on the shore and play in the sand and ride on the tube or kneeboard behind the little boat. We packed lunches for all the kids, and my husband and I, along with 2 of the other moms, stayed to entertain the kids while the other 3 dads and one mom took off down the lake in the houseboat to take care of business. We thought we had thought everything through. The guys would make sure that one person could drive, while the other two made sure they were headed in the right direction and could help dock the boat. One of the moms went along for the ride, so that she could cook dinner on the way back, knowing that it would take them a couple hours each way.
By midafternoon, everyone had had a couple turns on the boat, they had eaten all their lunches, the water bottles were all gone, and the snacks had been devoured. It was nice to hang out in the water, trying to keep cool in the heat. As it became dark, a huge storm began to blow in. the clouds covered the starry sky, monsoon winds came ripping through the valley into the cove where our little group continued to wait for our houseboat. At first we joked about spending the night the in rain on the shore of the lake, but after what seemed like hours, we started getting nervous. We tried calling the houseboat, but no one could find a signal. As it got later into the night, with starving, thirsty wet kids, my husband and I decided to leave all seven kids with the two moms on the shore and go search for our houseboat. As we took off, the waves in the middle of our little cove had white caps, and the water was pushing our little boat all over the place. Once we got out into the main channel, we found ourselves being tossed around like rag dolls. My husband found a tiny flashlight in the toolbox, and searched around us for landmarks, so that we knew where we were. Our thought was that the houseboat would see our navigation lights and be able to see us. As we flashed the beam from our small light, we were horrified to see walls of water surrounding us. The waves that were tossing us back and forth were higher than our boat. We decided to stay right where we were, and hope that we could see the houseboat come down the main channel as they made their way back to us.
Finally, we saw a little white light in the distance. At first it seemed to be coming toward us, then it completely disappeared. Minutes later, we saw a light again, only for it to disappear yet again! We didn’t know for sure if it was our houseboat, but we decided to try and flag down whatever vessel that was coming down the channel, to see if they had seen our missing houseboat. My husband stood up and pointed the beam of our little flashlight in their direction. We were really nervous as the vessel got closer, as it seemed to be driven by a ‘drunken sailor’, zigzagging in our direction. To our disappointment, we saw that the vessel kept going down the channel, far beyond us. As my husband frantically wave the flashlight above his head, the vessel made a sudden turn, and came directly at us. Once it got close, we saw that it was actually our houseboat! They had left the main dock around noon, but shortly after they left, one of the two engines stopped working. They decided to keep going, even though it was hard to steer being pushed from only one side of the back of the boat. They did okay, until the winds came up, the clouds covered the light from the moon and stars, and the waves began to slap the boat around. They said they saw our little light shining from the little flashlight in the darkness, but it kept flashing, and then they would lose sight of the light as our little boat would disappear in the ginormous waves. We tossed them a rope, and slowly drug the houseboat that was 3 times as long as our little boat. As we pulled them close to the shore, we could hear the cheers and screams of our kids! Soon the houseboat was safely tied up and secure, and all fifteen of us gathered inside that boat as the heavens opened up, and the rain gushed outside. We all laughed and giggled as we told the story from each of our perspectives. There was the version from the crew on the houseboat, the aspect of the people on the shore, and of course, our point of view from the little boat.
We all learned several lessons that day. One of those lessons was that no matter how small your light is, in complete darkness it can be seen. That little flashlight, powered by a double A battery, brought our houseboat home in the storm, and gave us the security a shelter that we all so desperately needed. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus asks us to be the light of the world, a city that cannot be hidden. Sometimes we think we are not the teacher, the minister, the pastor, the person in front of everyone, so we are not the person that can light the way for others. On the contrary, even our little light can shine, and help others find their way. We can shine our light, and truly be an example for all those around us.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16
As children, we learned a little song in Sunday school, I’m sure you know it too. ‘This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!’ That night we talked to all of our kids about letting our lights shine. As parents, we can’t panic. The best way to help me keep my head in crazy situations is to find a way to turn what is happening in life, turn this into a learning situation. As a parent, I want to give you two challenges today.
1) I challenge you to be a light…. A light in your family, in your home, at work, wherever you go.
2) I challenge you to find a way to turn everything into a positive learning situation for your kids. As they live through and see situations unfold in front of them, help them learn from what they are experiencing. In this case, our kids learned that the slightest light can make a difference.