Emphasis Preaching Journal

William L. Stidger tells the story of a man in his congregation who joined the Navy during World War II. One night, during a Boston layover, the naval officer stopped to see his pastor. Now the captain of a large transport, he told Dr. Stidger how he had guided his ship in a convoy across the Atlantic during a submarine attack. In one fateful moment, he noticed the white mark of a torpedo coming directly toward his ship, which was loaded with hundreds of men. He had no time to change course. Through a loudspeaker, he shouted, "Boys, this is it!" Nearby appeared a destroyer, whose captain had also seen the torpedo. With no hesitation, that captain shouted, "Full speed ahead!" The destroyer swiftly maneuvered into the path of the torpedo and took its full impact. It sank with all hands. After telling the story, the transport captain remained silent. Then, looking at his pastor, he said, "Dr. Stidger, the skipper of that destroyer was my best friend." Again he remained quiet for a time. Then, slowly, he remarked, "You know, there is a verse in the Bible which has special meaning for me now. It is this: 'Greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.' "
-- Keller