Sermon Illustration

Man Attempts Alaskan Channel Crossing in Duct-Taped Watercraft

In many instances, duct tape is highly reliable—but as a means of water transportation, it may not be a prime choice.

Just ask the Alaskan man who attempted to cross a channel near Juneau on a "homemade watercraft"—more specifically, "an inflatable, duct-taped craft"—complete with a paddle, his dog, and a conspicuous lack of a life jacket.

A local news outlet stated that while the "[w]eather on scene was reportedly calm with 9 mph winds," a local Coast Guard crew still ended up coming to the man's aid: when the makeshift boat started to fill with water.

Having "deemed the craft unsafe," they "transferred it, the man—and his dog—to [nearby] Douglas Harbor."

(Perhaps to guard against embarrassment, the news release "did not identify the man.")

Potential Preaching Angles: This man's "boat" was homemade, patched together with duct tape and carrying no life jacket on board—yet he still trusted it with his life (and even his dog's life). Is there anything in our lives that we rely on to give us health, happiness, and meaning when we should instead be relying on the ship that will never sink, the fortress and refuge in which we trust (Ps. 91:2)?

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