What? Steel Floats On Water?

I live in St. Charles MO located on the Missouri river near the confluence of the Missouri and the Mississippi rivers, the two largest river systems in the United States.
There is much barge traffic on these rivers. Barges are giant steel boats which are capable of carrying many tons of cargo. But how do they do it? They are made of steel, but we all know that if you drop a piece of steel into water it rapidly sinks to the bottom. What's going on here that allows such a heavy weight of cargo to be carried on our waterways without sinking?
There are two physical laws involved: the law of gravity tending to pull the barge down to the depths of the river, and the law of displacement. When we see a barge floating on the river, we know that the law of displacement has set the barge free from the law of gravity. The law of displacement had not negated the law of gravity, but it had set the barge free from the law of gravity in so far as it attempted to sink the barge in the water.
The law of displacement as applied to floating objects is: the total weight of the object must be less than the total weight of the water displaced by the physical size of the object in order for the object to float in the water.
As applied to barges, the total weight of the cargo of grain or oil or whatever is within the steel shell of the vessel must be less than the weight of the water volume displaced outside the vessel as it floats on the water.
Before this displacement principle was discovered, it was thought that any boat had to be made out of material lighter than water such as wood. But during the U.S. Civil War, steel hulled warships began to be constructed - the first steel boats.
Have you ever wondered how to carry your zest and fervor for Christ into those days when the car won't start, or the furnace quits, or the children are sick - or your job is suddenly gone?
What made the difference between the flamingly zealous apostle Paul and his cool-hearted helper Demas, whose fire finally went out? How does one move from a promise to a passion? What makes the difference between one who serves with spirit, and one who only does a duty?
I'm thinking that the real issue is what draws us to God, the underlying incentive, the dream in our hearts, that bright picture in our minds of His promise of future glory and our grip on it, something you and I really want. Each one of us wants eternal life, BUT WE NEED SOMETHING MORE SPECIFIC, A CLEAR MENTAL PICTURE OF WHAT WE WANT TO DO OR BE OR ENJOY IN ETERNITY'!
This picture may be very individualized. Maybe you are like me – one who likes to learn about the universe and its contents. I am ready to enroll in Heaven University and take whatever courses they offer. I like to picture myself flying from galaxy to galaxy, sun to sun, planet to planet, populating and teaching about the fundamentals of God.
For you, the mental and knowledgeable aspects of eternal life might not fascinate you as much as the emotional prospects – the vision of God and the relationships between the inhabitants of heaven. Maybe you yearn to create or design – a new flower, a new pattern, or a perfect work of art that at this time you can only start to imagine.
Yes, all this is well within the wonder of God's promise, which is "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think!" (Eph. 3:20).
People in the Bible were captured by these dreams. You will recall that the old patriarch Abraham was looking for a country, because he was an alien and pilgrim in his own. He was willing to leave that place called home in search of a far better future one – and was willing to spend everything he had. Abraham looked "for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God" (Heb. 11:10).
Yet we all have a tendency to dwell in the here-and-now. And true, there are matters that require our immediate attention. We have physical and moral duties in the world today. But is this all we want – all we require? Never!
How can we dwell beyond the here-and-now? The apostle Paul had the secret: "Forgetting the things that are past and reaching forward." I like that phrase, "reaching forward". Paul had his mind's eye fixed on Christ and all that Christ could give him – the crown of life, glory, honor, immortality (Phil. 3:13; 2 Tim. 4:8).
At the same time he was forgetting the things behind, the trivia, the worthless things that ought to be forgotten. If we make a habit of dwelling on trivia, trivia is all we will have.
How do we forget it? BY THE DISPLACEMENT PRINCIPLE. We forget what is worthless by focusing on what lies ahead, that dream uniquely in our heart, that vision of the promises of God that can be ours.
What is your dream? What promise of God captures you? What concept of the spirit world makes your heart beat faster?
All of God's promises are real. Dream as far as your eye can see – the reality will exceed it. Imagine, like me, the travel experience around the universe and the beauties of God's creation. Imagine the most beautiful music you have ever heard – you haven't heard anything to compare with the heavenly strains of heavenly instruments and voices. Try to feel the joy of the most loving, most delightful, most gracious companions you have ever known – the promises of God will explode that memory.
The law of displacement works in the mind as well as in the river. We continue to float safely in the river of life overcoming the law of gravity (freed from the law of sin and death) by a proper use of the displacement principle.
Displace those distractive worldly thoughts, that unimportant trivia, with dreams. What promise of God grips you? What are you looking forward to? Write it down! Look at it often. Dream about it! Picture yourself having it. Let it be your incentive, your reason for living and serving God. A longing only He can satisfy.
"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him"
(1 Corinthians 2:9).
But the more we learn about what God has for every faithful one, the more that dream will possess us and the more we will be inspired to reach forward. And as we keep reaching, a love for right doing will become our obsession. When it does, we will be on our way to developing the character and lifestyle of the Family of God to which we have been adopted.
Paul states the DISPLACEMENT PRINCIPLE as it applies to our thoughts:
"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – THINK ABOUT SUCH THINGS. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from Me, or seen in Me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:8-9)
Steel DOES NOT sink in the river waters when the proper rules of displacement are applied.
Your mind DOES NOT sink in the polluted waters of the world when the proper rules of thought displacement are applied.

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