Jim Mann
Many years ago, as the story is told, Hercules was traveling in what is now known as Spain. He was on the 10th of his famous 12 labors when he needed to cross the giant mountain that had been the mighty Atlas. Rather than ascending it, however, he used his incredible strength to smash through it. By doing so he connected the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea in what we now call the Strait of Gibraltar.
For many years that followed, this channel was the westward limit of the civilized world. On the other side was…who knows what. The lost city of Atlantis was out there…as were monsters and the edge of the world.
In fact, some well-meaning sailors placed a sign for other ships to see as they sailed through the Strait: Ne plus ultra. It means “nothing more beyond.” It was a warning of the dangers one might face when leaving the warm, well-known Mediterranean for the dangerous, unknown Atlantic.
But not everyone heeded this advice. Christopher Columbus sailed past this boundary. When Columbus discovered America, Charles V King of Spain changed the motto on his royal seal: plus ultra. More beyond. He wanted his subjects to ignore those ancient warnings, to take risks and go further beyond.
You can still see those Pillars of Hercules on the Spanish coat of arms. But now they are no longer seen as boundaries; they are portals.
As we head into 2015, I’m sure you are confronted by boundaries—things that have kept you from going further because of the fear of what lies beyond. I’m praying instead that these are portals—gateways to an exciting future. You may have ended 2014 with, “There is nothing more beyond…this is as good as it gets.” But God has more for you.
I’m reminded of that little prayer of Jabez in the Old Testament, “Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, ‘Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.’ And God granted his request (1 Chronicles 4:10, NIV).”
I am praying the same thing for you in 2015 and believe the Lord would say to you “There is more beyond.” Happy new year! I’ll see you in church.
Jim Mann, Ph.D. pastors New Life Church at Robson Ranch, which meets at the Robson Clubhouse on Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. Visit www.Robson.NewLifeDenton.org for more information.