“Quick, come with us before the water is so high that no vehicles will be able to drive.”  
The man said no.
“Why?” asked the fireman.
“God will save me.”

The waters continued to rise.  At this point the man had to be on the second floor.  A police boat came along and ordered the man to get aboard. 
He said no.
“Why?” yelled the policewoman through a loudspeaker.
“God will save me.”

Again, the waters continued to rise.  By then the man was perched on the roof of his house, when a helicopter flew past. “Grab the harness!” yelled the soldier.  
The man refused.
“God will save me.”

Alas, the poor man did not survive the flood.  As his spirit made its way through the pearly gates, the man passed St Peter.  He explained what had happened.
“But I trusted in God, that he would save me, but here I am.  What’s going on?”
“Hang on,” said St Peter, “Think about it.  He gave you three chances.  You just didn’t take them.”

Regardless of your beliefs, I’d like to think the message is the same – when opportunities come around, grab them with both hands. We decide what kind of life we are going to lead.  At Pilgrims’ we try to provide opportunities to help boys find out what is RIGHT about them and what is RIGHT for them and what kind of person they are.  We just need to encourage them to take those chances.

Matt Shroff
Director of Wellbeing