Let’s Build a Boat: A Lesson in Fostering Faith
14 So make yourself an ark of cypress[c] wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.[d] 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit[e] high all around.[f] Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17 I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. 18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21 You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.” Genesis 6: 13-21
As a mom to five kids, I’m used to having all kinds of conversations. I’ve had mature discussions about life and love with my three older, biological kids, and I’ve had some interesting, “who’s-on-first” types of conversations with my adopted, younger kids.
Last week, I had a conversation with my six-year-old son that I just haven’t been able to stop thinking about.
We were on our way home from running some errands when a catchy song came on the radio. I had only heard it one other time, so I asked my son if he would be quiet for a moment so I could listen to it. I liked the tune but really hadn’t heard the words before. In a rare moment of following directions immediately, he stopped talking and listened to the song, too.
The song was called “Build a Boat” by Colton Dixon, a contemporary Christian artist. As the song was finishing, I turned into our drive, and my son asked me, “Mommy, what’s the name of that song?” I told him the name, and he thought about that for a few seconds. Then he asked, “Why is it called that?”
Not knowing Colton’s reasoning behind the song, we crept up our driveway as I took my own shot at its meaning. I asked my son if he remembered the story of Noah. He said, “God told Noah to build a boat because it was going to rain and everybody was going to die except for Noah and his family. Oh, and he was supposed to put two of every animal on the boat so that the world could start over when the rain dried up.” Not bad, Little Man!
So, after singing a few of the lyrics for him, I asked, “What do you think this song is about then?”
He gave a thoughtful look and answered, “I think it’s about following directions.”
When asked if he thought that would be a hard thing to do, he exclaimed with a sassy grin, “Yeah, because I don’t know how to build a boat!” Then, he went on a short tangent about traipsing into our woods with Daddy’s tools and chopping down all of the trees. Afterward, because he has a difficult time following more than one direction at a time, he said he’d sit on the big pile of wood until God gave him the next direction.
By this point, we had come to a stop in front of our house. That’s usually Little Man’s cue to jump out of the vehicle and run into the house, but he didn’t. He continued to sit, so we continued to talk.
I told him that as much as God loved the world and had created it to be a beautiful place for us, the people in it had become wicked and evil. He was regretting the fact that he had created humans (Genesis 6:7), and he wanted to start over again.
But, there was this one guy, Noah, that had remained faithful to God. God decided to spare him and his family from destruction. God commanded him to build an ark: a really big boat.
“Just one guy?” he asked. “Just one guy,” I confirmed.
We talked about how difficult it must have been for Noah. Since Little Man’s attention span is pretty short, we only touched on three of those difficulties.
First, God gave some pretty specific directions and exact measurements to Noah. Personally, I hope that Noah took great notes or that God gave frequent reminders.
Second, Noah was already an old man when he was chosen for this job. For a job of that size, it was going to require a lot of physical labor and time. Plus, he and his wife were still having kids and raising their family. So many distractions to contend with!
Third, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, not a drop of rain in sight. God was asking Noah to build an extremely large boat in an area that wasn’t even close to a large body of water. I reminded my son, too, that God didn’t ask Noah to build the ark in a day. God was asking him to prepare for something that wasn’t going to occur for many, many years into the future. God was asking Noah to get ready for something he had NEVER seen in his lifetime nor would ever expect to see under typical circumstances.
Can you imagine the strange looks and the ridicule Noah must have received year after year after year?
Yet, he did it. Without any sort of evidence that there would be a monumental flood, he followed the directions God gave him. And Noah was ready when the time came. As the song says, “Let it rain.”
After a little more explanation, I asked my son if he still thought the song was about following directions.
“I think it means we’re supposed to follow directions when we’re asked to and not argue about it,” was his reply.
You got it, Little Buddy! This was the best answer because he is notorious for wanting to argue or negotiate EVERY TIME we give him directions.
“Why do you think Noah followed God’s directions?” I asked.
“Well, he must have known how much God loved him and wanted to protect him.”
I asked him if he thought he could have followed God’s directions, especially if they didn’t seem to make sense to him.
“Uh, no!” he exclaimed. “I’m only six years old!” And, just like that, he opened the door and ran off to play.
Since then, I have replayed that conversation over and over in my mind dozens of times. My son and I looked at the song from the perspective of “following directions,” but I’ve been dwelling on the perspective of Noah’s faith.
Faith implies that we put our trust in God even when it doesn’t make sense to us; we cannot see or understand the reasoning. In Noah’s case, he was told to build a boat in a land that never saw rain.
So why do we do it? Why do we put our faith in God?
In the story of Noah, we can see that God provides a way for those who have faith. Noah didn’t feel the need to make God prove that there was going to be a flood, but in holy reverence, he obeyed to save his family. In time, it was made perfectly clear why God told him to build a boat, and his faithfulness was rewarded.
Noah wasn’t a model individual by any means. He was an ordinary guy that made monumental mistakes, just like I do, but he continued to live a life of faithfulness. God used him and made a way for him.
Most of the time, I don’t understand why God asks of me the things he does. Sometimes, I try to resist and do things my way, but he always brings me around. At times, it’s in a gentle, loving way, and other times he gives me the wake-up call that I need. Some reasons become apparent at a later time, and there are others that I’m still waiting to understand…in God’s time.
Our family’s call to become a foster and adoptive family is one of those situations where it’s a bit of a split. Living life with my two youngest children answers my every question as to why God called us to this ministry and to be their parents. We need them as much as they need us. On a lighter note, one day I hope to understand why God waited until I was 47 years old.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Though I don’t often understand the why of it, I thank you for the opportunities you give me to grow my faith in you. I try not to worry and stress and take matters into my own hands, but sometimes I slip. Guide me in the way you’d have me go, and help me to lean into you.
Time and time again, you’ve proven your faithfulness. Help me to remember when I forget. Strengthen me as I walk with you.
Let it rain.
In Jesus’ name I pray,
Amen.
