Hello, this is pastor gary from first baptist church of laplata. On this date in history in 1914, 108 years ago, the Panama Canal opened to traffic transiting the roughly 40 mile isthmus between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Prior to the canal, the same trip was 9000 miles longer! First proposed in 1513 by Spanish explorer Nunez, the French started the actual digging in 1881. After eight years and the loss of 20,000 lives, the French project went bankrupt. US President Teddy Roosevelt resurrected the project and oversaw the completion of the canal. Today, large container ships may spend over $1 million to use the canal and are happy to do so because of the time and money saved sailing around the tip of South America. The canal passes through man-made Lake Gatun which is 85 feet above sea level requiring a set a three locks to raise and lower ships on each end of their journey. When I was in Panama earlier this month, I watched three ships lock through the canal and was amazed by the foresight, ingenuity, and technology that is the Panama Canal. Though it took 400 years from conception to completion, the Panama Canal is an now an engineering marvel and a navigational necessity. Likewise, the Christian life is not a sprint but a marathon. Receiving Christ as personal Savior begins our life-long race with Him. Though the race is completed when we cross the finish line at death, we continue our eternal walk with Christ in Heaven.
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