Near the harsh coastline of the Atlantic Ocean there was a small town called Ecclesville that had witnessed a seemingly endless string of lives lost at sea. From catastrophic shipwrecks to surfers being swept out to their watery graves by the unforgiving undercurrents, it was as if there was no hope for any poor soul who came into contact with this beautiful but deadly corner of the earth.
The residents of Ecclesville became so perturbed by the long list of tragedies that they decided the only right and wise thing to do was to form a Rescue Society. The Rescue Society would exist to save as many potential victims as it could, sailors, surfers, swimmers, and anyone else who would otherwise be swallowed up by the sea.
For years the Rescue Society performed its duties with admirable courage and conviction. Hundreds of lives were snatched from the jaws of death. Though the Rescue Society members risked -- and sometimes lost -- their own lives in the line of duty, they remained faithful to their original call to exist for the sake of others, and their selfless heroics became known throughout the surrounding regions.
As a new generation of members entered the doors of the Rescue Society, eager to better the last, they began to perfect their rescue operations. Rescue workshops were constantly being run, with trained teachers educating members on the latest techniques and advancements in rescue procedure. Small groups of Rescue Society members would meet throughout the week, discussing the workshop material and bouncing ideas off each other with a view to bettering themselves. The equipment being used also experienced constant updates, with many sales teams invited in to showcase the latest rescue harness or life-jacket or some other such device.
The Rescue Society had indeed progressed from its original conception. Its members were better trained, the rescue station could accommodate twice as many people, and the equipment being utilised was far more technologically advanced than that of the previous generation. The perfection of the Rescue Society was the focus of this ambitious generation, and every day they came closer and closer to achieving it. This filled them with a certain sense of pride and accomplishment.
One night, as every member of the society gathered in Ecclesville town hall to hear a top rescue consultant thrash out innovative ways to improve the Rescue Society’s performance, a massive passenger liner crashed into the perilous rocks just off the coastline and quickly sank. Hundreds of lives were lost. The Rescue Society was simply unable to act quickly enough. In existing for its own perfection, it had forgotten its original reason for existence - for the sake of others.
Stolen from Inspired by M. Robert Mulholland Jr (“Spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others”) and The Guardian, a truly appalling film.
The residents of Ecclesville became so perturbed by the long list of tragedies that they decided the only right and wise thing to do was to form a Rescue Society. The Rescue Society would exist to save as many potential victims as it could, sailors, surfers, swimmers, and anyone else who would otherwise be swallowed up by the sea.
For years the Rescue Society performed its duties with admirable courage and conviction. Hundreds of lives were snatched from the jaws of death. Though the Rescue Society members risked -- and sometimes lost -- their own lives in the line of duty, they remained faithful to their original call to exist for the sake of others, and their selfless heroics became known throughout the surrounding regions.
As a new generation of members entered the doors of the Rescue Society, eager to better the last, they began to perfect their rescue operations. Rescue workshops were constantly being run, with trained teachers educating members on the latest techniques and advancements in rescue procedure. Small groups of Rescue Society members would meet throughout the week, discussing the workshop material and bouncing ideas off each other with a view to bettering themselves. The equipment being used also experienced constant updates, with many sales teams invited in to showcase the latest rescue harness or life-jacket or some other such device.
The Rescue Society had indeed progressed from its original conception. Its members were better trained, the rescue station could accommodate twice as many people, and the equipment being utilised was far more technologically advanced than that of the previous generation. The perfection of the Rescue Society was the focus of this ambitious generation, and every day they came closer and closer to achieving it. This filled them with a certain sense of pride and accomplishment.
One night, as every member of the society gathered in Ecclesville town hall to hear a top rescue consultant thrash out innovative ways to improve the Rescue Society’s performance, a massive passenger liner crashed into the perilous rocks just off the coastline and quickly sank. Hundreds of lives were lost. The Rescue Society was simply unable to act quickly enough. In existing for its own perfection, it had forgotten its original reason for existence - for the sake of others.
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