A New Ship

Selfless in Jesus

Temple of Holy Spirit

A New Ship, as the Temple of God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind, together form a sacred vessel—like both a ship and a temple of God.

Just as a ship does not sink from the stormy waters surrounding it or the darkness around it, but only when those dark waters seep inside and weigh it down, so we are not defeated by the darkness and evils of the world around us—only by allowing them to enter and anchor us into the wages of sin, the weight of folly, and the tricks and lies of deception.

Satan once chained this vessel to sin in the heart, dragging it toward destruction, deception, and demise.

Lighten the weights of the world with love.

To love God is to join in Jesus. It is the circumcision of the heart—a spiritual, inward transformation performed by the Holy Spirit through Jesus—replacing a sinful, hardened heart with a new, obedient one, enslaved to righteousness.

Your bodies, then, are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God. You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.

New and filled with truth, love, and the indwelling Holy Spirit, this renewed ship-temple sails boldly through life’s raging storms. Guided along the paths Jesus walks ahead of you, His kind and gentle voice assures the right way.

In the joyful winds of God’s Holy Spirit, in righteousness, truth, and unconditional love—enslaved no longer to sin, but liberated to sail freely in God’s perfect love, God’s grace, all to the glory of God.

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Christ Our Pilot

The Painting by Warner Sallman is a striking 1950 painting that beautifully captures themes of trust, guidance, and faith amid life’s storms—making it a perfect visual companion to my New Ship, Selfless in Jesus & Temple of Holy Spirit temple analogy story and poem about navigating sin’s darkness with Jesus at the helm.

God speaks to me in everything. So if someone were to tell me to find a quiet place and talk to God, I would say that when I am alone, I am always with God—that is my quiet time. I see street signs with words meant for me. I hear songs in the wind. There are messages in the music and patterns in the numbers. I see stories in smiles and in tears. I see the face of God as I am looking at the room as in God is all. The words of God are quick to reveal, and the truth from God is there—it is everywhere, if you are looking.

One day, while I was cleaning and moving some things around, a photo fell out. It was a picture of me as a seven-year-old boy, wearing my sailor outfit. I had already placed a Sailer Boy with Jesus painting on my counter, so right away I knew what God was telling me that day: that Jesus was with me to help and guide His little sailor boy. Gods winks and nods always there. I hear the love song in all the noises and the love stories in all, in everything. And today was one of those days again. I had become a little misguided and with the winds of the past, and Jesus Christ gently guided me right back into easy waters and the joy of love. I still keep this photo and the picture side by side—a reminder of guidance, returning me to the right path.

The artwork depicts Jesus standing behind and guiding a young man (representing the believer or “helmsman”) at the wheel of a small boat as they steer through turbulent, stormy waters. Both figures gaze forward toward calmer horizons, symbolizing Jesus as the steady Pilot who ensures safe passage to a peaceful harbor. It’s often described as portraying “action and challenge,” serving as a powerful reminder to trust in Christ during difficult times, drawing inspiration from biblical accounts like Jesus calming the storm on the Sea of Galilee (Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, Luke 8:22-25). The painting has been widely reproduced as prints, canvases, and posters, and it even influenced some modern Eastern Orthodox iconography adaptations.

Warner Sallman (1892–1968) was a Chicago-based American illustrator and painter, deeply rooted in his Swedish Evangelical Covenant Church faith. He began as a commercial artist but shifted to Christian imagery after 1920. He’s best known for his iconic Head of Christ (1940), reproduced over 500 million times worldwide, making it one of the most recognized images of Jesus ever. Other popular works include Christ at Heart’s Door, Christ in Gethsemane, The Lord is My Shepherd, and Christ Our Pilot—all emphasizing approachable, comforting depictions of Jesus that resonated especially in mid-20th-century Protestant circles.

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Body as Temple of the Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

Circumcision of the Heart / Inward Transformation

Deuteronomy 30:6
The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.

Romans 2:29
No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Jeremiah 4:4
Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts, you people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or my wrath will flare up and burn like fire because of the evil you have done—burn with no one to quench it.

New Heart and New Spirit

Ezekiel 36:26
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Freed from Sin, Enslaved to Righteousness

Romans 6:18
You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

Romans 6:22
But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.

Jesus Guiding / Calming the Storm (Pilot/Helmsman Imagery)

Mark 4:39 (from the calming the storm account, Matthew 8:23-27; Luke 8:22-25)
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

Psalm 23:1-4 (Jesus as Shepherd guiding paths)
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Perfect Love Drives Out Fear / Sailing in Love and Grace

1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

God Speaking/Revealing in Everything (Creation, Signs, Personal Moments)

Psalm 19:1-4
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

Romans 1:20
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

Matthew 22:36-40
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

1 John 5:14-15
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

His Will: This is the key condition, meaning prayers should align with God’s character, promises, and plans, as described in scripture, rather than selfish desires.

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Matthew 10
English Standard Version
The Twelve Apostles
And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay. Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food. And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. As you enter the house, greet it. And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.

Persecution Will Come
“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

Have No Fear
“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Not Peace, but a Sword
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Rewards
“Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.”