Tied up in Knots

Most of you know I took up a new hobby last summer with sailing.  I hate to admit that I started sailing before I had proper training.  This summer, we took the time to listen to the seasoned sailors at the club dock tell us more about wind conditions, sail positions, retrieving a "man overboard," and safe docking.

One of the lessons I found I did not know was how to tie good knots.  I learned there are good knots, and there are bad knots.  For a knot to be considered a "good knot,"it must meet three primary criteria:

1. Good knots must have a purpose.
2. Good knots must hold, and not slip.
3. Good knots must be easy to untie.

There are many knots used in sailing.  Each kind of knot has a unique purpose.  Everyone knows the square knot (not pictured).  This is called a reef knot in sailing, and used to reef a sail (tie it up) during a storm.  The bowline knot (pictured above) is used to create a loop in your line (rope).  The loop end of the rope can then be thrown to catch a dock post.  The sheet bend (pictured left) is used to tie two lines together (can be uneven sized).  The clove hitch (pictured below) is used to secure your boat to a dock post.


I loved learning about these knots, and I found myself thinking about the "good knot" criteria, and comparing it with God's word.  Let's review each one in turn.

1. Good knots must have a purpose.
A knot is not considered "good" if it does not serve a purpose.  Interestingly, neither are believers.  Jesus Himself told the disciples, "Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone," (Mark 16:15 NLT). This is the purpose He gave each of us.

2. Good knots must hold, and not slip.  
What good is a knot if it slips, and the boat gets away?  In the same manner, a believer who is not holding fast to the Word can slip, and fall away.  God told Joshua, "Study this Book of Instruction continually.  Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it.  Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do," (Joshua 1:8 NLT).  This is the key to staying grounded in obedience.

3. Good knots must be easy to untie.
This lesson was the hardest for me to understand.  Why would I need to untie a knot quickly and easily?  To sail away from a dock, the line must be quick to loose and throw into the boat, so that the sailor can quickly jump onboard and man the tiller.  A knot may also need to be loosed quickly to avoid a dangerous situation of being tethered to something that could cause a boat to sink.  I thought about believers who are tethered to things that may become unhealthy.  I'm talking about how sometimes the things we hold onto can become idols in our lives.  A believer must be able to quickly loose the things that become idols to keep us from losing our focus.  "And what union can there be between God's temple and idols?  For we are the temple of the living God.  As God said: 

'I will live in them 

and walk among them.  

I will be their God, 

and they will be my people.'" 

(2Corinthians 6:16 NLT)  

I should mention it took me three hours to learn to tie these knots in a manner that I could remember later.  I was appalled that I couldn't learn these knots as quickly as I thought I should.  I felt stupid, but that message is for another post.