The story of USS Yorktown, one of the very first aircraft carriers constructed by the US Navy, is one of my favorites from World War II. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Yorktown sailed for the Pacific and took part in the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first naval battle fought entirely by aircraft. During the battle, a single Japanese bomb landed on target, penetrating the flight deck and exploding from within.
The US Navy’s damage control personnel were legendary. Repair teams worked around the clock to keep Yorktown afloat and soon she was steaming for Pearl Harbor. The Navy Yard initially estimated that repairs would take at least two weeks, but two days later she was back in shape and headed for Midway.
The Battle of Midway would be the turning point in the Pacific War, as the Navy sunk all four carriers of Japan’s feared Kido Butai strike force. The importance of Yorktown’s participation in that battle cannot be overstated. Not only did her air wings help sink two of the four carriers, but she bore the brunt of both Japanese counterattacks. The first attack hit Yorktown with three bombs, and Japanese pilots reported that they had sunk an American carrier.

Yet the skill of the Navy’s damage control teams was unparalleled. Within hours, they had patched the holes and gotten underway once more. By the time the second Japanese attack commenced, they saw Yorktown making full speed and assumed she was another carrier. They attacked again, and two more bombs struck the ship. Japanese pilots flew home believing they had sunk a second carrier.
Even then, Yorktown was not lost. Though disabled, the Navy began towing her back to port but had to disengage when they came under attack by a Japanese submarine. One of the sub’s torpedoes struck Yorktown below the water line and before long she lay at the bottom of the ocean.
In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis used ships as analogies for human beings. The master of a ship is concerned with three things:
The voyage will be a success only, in the first place, if the ships do not collide and get in one another’s way; and, secondly, if each ship is seaworthy and has her engined in good order. As a matter of fact, you cannot have either of these two things without the other. If the ships keep on having collisions they will not remain seaworthy very long. On the other hand, if their steering gears are out of order they will not be able to avoid collisions.
But there is one thing we have not yet taken into account. We have not asked where the fleet is trying to get to…
So it is with humanity. To fulfill God’s design for our lives we must be concerned with 1) proper conduct between us and other people; 2) the inner workings of ourselves, both physically and spiritually; and 3) what we are aiming to accomplish in our lives.
Modern society would have you focus entirely on the first concern while ignoring the second and third. “Just be kind,” we’re told, and don’t be concerned with what people do in private or whether or not our lives have meaning. The result of this secular nihilism is a generation of broken people —chronically sick, emotionally troubled, and lacking the identity and meaning that once gave structure to our lives.
The United States was able to defeat Japan during World War II in large part because we had a well ordered Navy that fulfilled each of the three concerns. Each ship was kept in working order, even when, as in the case of USS Yorktown, it meant repairing battle damage on the fly. Each ship maintained the proper distance from each other, sailing in formation. Finally, the entire fleet was united by a common goal: to defeat Japan one island at a time.

To have the same success in our own lives, to defeat the demons that plague humanity, requires the same unity of purpose:
Keep yourself in working order, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally. Society today makes it easy to overeat, to consume torpid content, to consign our connection with our Creator to a small box. To flourish means taking the harder road.
Maintain good relations with your neighbors and colleagues. This is the realm of politics, of regulating conduct between people and groups. Our goal should be to order society in such a way as to incentivize right living in the first realm while preserving the freedoms our founders cherished.
Finally, know who you are and why you are here. You only have one chance to make your mark in this life. What is your goal, your purpose? Are you just marking time, or are you doing things now that will echo through eternity?
Our ancestors knew —the first question of the Westminster Catechism states, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.”
King Solomon came to the same conclusion after examining the fruitlessness of his own life:
Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
Ecclesiastes 12:13b ESV
Or, as the prophet Micah said:
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Micah 6:8 ESV
Go forward with a fair wind and a following tide, my friends.
Thank you Brian. As a follower of Christ I struggle with social media and playing nice with those I vehemently disagree with. Too many times the bad in me is put in text or memes. I know the left needs Jesus and I would love to just tell them that, but they would think I was being disingenuous.
I was in a small group recently through our church and one of the members was the former minority leader for the GOP in your former State Brian. He is a Godly man and we spoke about battling those to the left and he stated the same, that most are lost, some are evil and doing the devils' handiwork. He stated that he always had an open door policy while in the house of WA state and came to have good relationships with those he opposed on political grounds and at times they would come and ask for advice or prayer. This is a far better man than me and I have to remind myself these people are lost in the World and have no understanding of God's grace.
Being Salt and Light is something to strive for sure. Thanks for the reminder.