Strange compass. It doesn't point north. Indeed, it can spin around randomly. Seemingly randomly. Captain Jack Sparrow's compass doesn't point north. It points to what the holder's heart desires most.
Doesn't life feel this way sometimes? Spinning around and around. Wondering where we'll point next. Following what the world says we should, what the human desires tempt us to. But God is our True North. He is ever faithful and steady. He never wavers or falters. Even when we do.
Jack's compass reminds me of this verse:
Luke 12:34
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Think about this. That wild crazy compass was leading the holder to the treasures that the heart sought. God knows all about our hearts. He knows what we treasure most owns our heart.
The bumps of life, the deep pits and trials. The joys and the celebrations. The point of the compass can bounce around, it can be wildly crazy and never settled on one thing. But even in the movies there is wisdom. When Jack can focus on what he wants most, the needle becomes stead and true.
When we settle our hearts on seeking God, the treasures heavenly and the blessings on earth, our compass remains steady and true. It is pointing to God. To love. To grace. To the treasure our hearts seek most. Him.
One scene in Pirates of the Carribean: Curse of the Black Pearl comes to mind. Norrington is doing an inventory of the 'worst pirate I've ever seen'. Gun with a single shot, no reloads. Compass that doesn't point north. Useless. He pulls the sword out of the sheath and remarks sarcastically, "I was almost expecting it to be made of wood."
Life is like that. Our compass seems to wobble. No one thinks we have more than one shot, and even our sword is assumed to be less then useless. Wooden. A toy. And yet, like that fictional commodore, the world is wrong.
We only need One shot. Jesus took that for us. We don't need a compass pointing to the world's idea of north. God gave us a heart that moves to all points seeking Him. Our sword, unexpectedly, is both sharp and powerful. Sword of the spirit. God armed us. He charges His angels to protect us.
We don't need more than that friends.
Don't fret that your compass seems to be broken to the world. Fret only if your compass doesn't hold to the true destination of our hearts - God.
