The Departure

Growing up, my family and I would routinely venture out on the mammoth waters of Lake Erie. We only lived about a half an hour from the lake, and mom and dad owned a 21 foot Grady White fiberglass boat that they kept docked at a lake marina. On the weekends, if the weather was nice, we would head out for a lake adventure.

By Friday, we would start our preparations. The goal was to be packed and ready to take off early in the morning. Mom would pack our lunch, Dad would make sure we had the fishing gear ready, and my brother and I would help haul everything to the vehicle. The next morning we would make a final check of our supplies and head out.

We’d park the car near our dock and haul the supplies down the stairs to our boat. I worked eagerly, because I knew the sooner we loaded the boat, the sooner we could get out fishing. But dad and mom never rushed because they knew we didn’t want to leave something behind. It would be a long trip back to shore if we did.

After everything was loaded onto the boat and the vehicle locked, dad would fire up the engine and we’d be ready to go. The final step before departure was loosing the ropes that secured the boat to the dock. That was perhaps the most exciting moment for me because I knew at that point we were heading out to the lake. My brother and I had the job of loosing those ropes on the bow and stern. As soon as we did, dad engaged the engine and we were off. The fishing trip had begun!

In 2 Timothy 4:6, Paul writes to Timothy saying, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come.” He is in prison and has already appeared before the court once. Probably from his assessment of that first hearing, he did not feel the trial would go well for him and likely result in his execution. But he uses this phrase “time of my departure” to describe his death. The term ‘departure’ has its meaning based in the loosing of a ship from its dock or anchoring so it can depart from the harbor and set sail. That’s Paul’s view of death–setting sail for the shores of glory.

Paul knew he had work to do on this earth until he set sail for glory, but as he looked back at his life he knew the work had been done. He faithfully preached the gospel and honored the LORD with his life. The supplies were loaded. The ship was ready. Now all that needed to be done was the ropes to be loosed from the dock. When that happened he knew his journey to the shores of glory had begun.

I don’t know about you, but I too often view death as an end rather than a beginning. It’s easy to focus on what is lost in death rather than what is gained. Death for the believer should never be seen as an ending but a beginning–a departure into glory! I don’t know where I am in preparation right now. I might be packing the lunch, loading the vehicle, or bringing the supplies on board the boat. But wherever I am at, one day the ropes will be set loose and eternity will begin. What a glorious day that will be!