It traveled 1,735 miles over a period of 21 years before landing at its final destination. The amazingly rare voyage was taken by a message enclosed in a plastic bottle. It had been tossed into the sea by in 1987. Emily Hwaung, then a fourth grader in Seattle, Washington, as part of a science experiment to track ocean currents and learn about people in distant lands.
After two decades the container was picked up by Merle Brandell along the shore of Nelson Lagoon, a small Alaskan fishing village on the Bering Sea. Upon opening the bottle, he discovered the note that read, "This letter is part of our science project to study oceans and learn about people in distant lands. Please send the date and location of the bottle with your address. I will send you my picture and tell you when and where the bottle was placed in the ocean. Your friend, Emily Hwaung." The 30-year old accountant, whose name is now Emily Shih, said she was flabbergasted by the news but stated, "I don't remember the project. It was so long ago. Elementary school is kind of foggy." Today, 34-year old Merle Brandell is a bear hunting guide and manager of a local water plant. He commented about the find that many of the 70-plus residents of Nelson Lagoon enjoy beach-combing as a sporting activity and one of the unique pleasures of life in the remote town.
A message set afloat in a bottle is typically thought of as a desperate act by someone hopelessly stranded alone on some remote island and in great need of being rescued. And despite the odds against such an attempt ever being effective, when there is no other hope, any way of communicating seems worth trying.
Effective and timely communication is the foundation of any relationship and every culture. Without it, little or nothing profitable can be achieved or maintained. Fortunately for a human race hopelessly lost and stranded by sin, a loving God has not allowed His message of forgiveness to casually drift around in some hit or miss fashion. His precise words were revealed to those who originally penned them. This ensured the spread of His great redemptive plan in print and by mouth through dedicated followers of Christ in the early church days. A tremendous example of this pattern is strikingly clear in 1 Thessalonians 1:8. "For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything."
Since those unique times God's word has been spread verbally, and in written form, in a stunning and miraculous way. The Bible Society of the United Kingdom calculates that, as of the year 2007, approximately 7.5 billion Bibles have been distributed throughout world with the majority still available for use! This translates to about one copy for every individual on earth, not including the digital computer versions of the Scriptures being used today by millions. They also reveal that the complete Bible has been published in over 450 languages, the New Testament alone in nearly 1,400 languages, and the Gospel of Mark in over 2,370 languages. The Scriptures are still the best selling book and message in all of human history.
Between His written and spoken word, God has carefully promoted and preserved His priceless message making it understandable to whoever is willing to trust the Savior it speaks of and through. A loving Creator also guarantees that efforts to disperse His eternal rescue plan will not be wasted, a principle stated by the prophet Isaiah in chapter 55 and verse 11. "So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."
A message with the ability to rescue the souls of men should never drift about aimlessly or be kept bottled up by those who know its potential and who have been made new creations in Christ through its mighty power!
Bill Breckenridge
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