This week I finished reading a book I had always heard about, but had never read: Herman Melville’s The White Whale or Moby Dick. In it he tells the story of Captain Ahab, who was obsessed with killing the great white whale which had caused him to lose his leg. For every ship he met as he led his own boat around the world in search of the whale, he had one question: “Hast seen the white whale?” Once Ahab’s ship passed another which had an amazing catch; their boat was full of whale oil; their crew was all dancing and drinking and celebrating, and as the ships crossed paths, they invited Ahab to come over; they were holding a bottle and a glass for him. But monomaniac Ahab had only one question for them: “Hast seen the white whale?” The other captain hadn’t; he said he didn’t even believe there WAS such a whale. Ahab immediately commanded his crew: “Forward! Set all sail!” He had only ONE aim: the great white whale, and the great white whale only. He had to eat, drink, sleep, wear a cloak in the storm to stay alive — but all of that was just the means to the end: to kill that white whale. Nothing else really mattered.
That kind of singular focus is rare in our day, when we tend to be so “scattered” and tossed between priorities and events. Or if we ARE focused on one thing, it is often the WRONG thing: money or sports or so-called “success” or some other very temporary worldly thing. But Jesus has a word of challenge here in Matthew 6:33, where He commands us and all who would be His followers:
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Continue reading →
