All Aboard the Glass Bottom Boat
Wednesday, September 6, 2023
“They bathe themselves in the bottomless, shoreless sea of infinite blessing.” – C.H. Spurgeon
Have you ever visited Silver Springs State Park in Ocala, Florida? I remember going there as a child, but more recently, Deanna and I went ourselves and then again with our three oldest grandkids.
The highlight of the park is unquestionably the glass bottom boat tour. There are two options: the 30-minute mini-tour or the more extensive 90-minute version that covers much of the 5-mile Silver River. Both tours allow visitors to experience first-hand some of the 30 different natural springs within the 4,000-acre park, including the justifiably named Mammoth Spring.
In addition to the spectacular foliage, waterfowl, fish, manatees, and reptiles, visitors get to see where scenes from more than 20 Hollywood movies – including Rebel Without a Cause, Distant Drums, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Smokey and the Bandit – Part 3, three James Bond installments (Thunderball, Moonraker, and Never Say Never Again), and six Tarzan flicks – were filmed. Large segments of Sea Hunt, a popular TV series from the 1960s starring Lloyd Bridges, were also shot at Silver Springs as was an episode of I Spy.
The most fascinating aspect of Silver Springs, at least to me, is how far down you can see. What seems like 10 feet is more like 30 because the water is so pure, having been filtered to perfection by layers of limestone strata. The springs also produce more than 73,500,000 cubic feet of water every day… all maintained at exactly 74 degrees Fahrenheit.
As Charles Spurgeon points out in today’s quote, God’s blessings are even deeper and more infinite than the 500,000,000 gallons of crystal-clear water that emanate from Silver Springs every 24-hours. They never run dry and, just like the beds and the porridge in the Three Little Bears Cottage, they aren’t too hard, soft, hot, or cold. Instead, they are just right – for you!
“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 (NJKV)
“O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!” Romans 11:33 (BSB)
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
