The Marriage Ship

THE MARRIAGE SHIP
When we were wed, we went to sea
Upon a shattered rail
And put our trust in miracles
That we could make it sail.
Unmindful of its size and length,
We walked it up and down;
Until at last it grew in strength
And gained a sterner prow.
The stars of night burned ne’er so bright
As when we scanned the dark
To find the course God charted out
Before we had embarked.
Though tempests came, and billows raged,
No waves were e’er so wild
That time and patience could not find
A way to make them mild.
Then shipmates came.
I witnessed yet another miracle;
From rail to raft our vessel grew
’Till fitted out with sails,
There rode the seas majestically
A ship made from a rail.
The wind that carried it along
Blew fewer fitful gales,
But rather breathed of a perfume
No earthly presence wears.
And then I knew our ship did move
By our great Helmsman’s prayers.


How happily I sail life’s seas
With this well-seasoned crew.
How much I long to spend this day
And everyday with you.
Oh, may the sunshine never set upon our ship at sea,
But I, within my heart, will know
The morning’s sun will see
Us all together, everyone,
Each helping out the other,
’Till we in Christ are anchored down,
Each sister and each brother.
And that’s how miracles are made.
It’s taking what is low
And seeing not what’s shattered,
But what love can make to grow.