Noah's Ark-real?

I'm speaking at a church this weekend and the pastor asked me to specifically cover the Biblical account of Noah. Its a fascinating story that I remember from my childhood and have already passed on to my boys.  As I've been studying for the message I've encountered a whole lot of debate regarding the authenticity of the story historically by people who, it seems to me, are missing the point. On the one hand there is historical evidence of other flood stories throughout ancient Mesopotamian literature, causing some to wonder about the origin of the Biblical account. On the other side of the fence are people denying the existence of stories outside of the Bible and fear that an awareness of the non-biblical literature threatens the viability of our scripture.  Neither is a threat to me.

Moses was commissioned by God hundreds, if not thousands, of years after Noah to write the account of mankind's history. He did so, highlighting brief segments of history as GOD saw it. God was communicating his ongoing, powerful story of love for mankind as he directed Moses to write the story of the flood.  In reality, other people had attempted writing their version of a historical account but they had no connection to the creator who was establishing millenia-long relationship with humanity. No threat here, we are able to view the perspective of the one timeless figure in world history-God's. 

Noah showed an unbelievable trust in God when it couldn't have made logical sense to build a big boat when no-one else was even thinking about it.  There is plenty of speculation out there about how much ridicule he must have received from the society that he lived in.  What are you doing, taking time away from having fun like the rest of us? What's the point Noah? All Genesis tells us is that Noah was a righteous man, who was obedient and God counted on during turbulent times.  I think the most amazing part of Noah's life was his ability to remain mission focused, at 600 years old, when everyone else had lost any sense of mission in their lives. In effect, he lived for something.  What are you living for? How can you grow more focused the older you get? How can you be found 'righteous' in this generation? 

We know that God won't  be sending any world-wide floods any more-he's promised to never do that again. However, we do know that there is a conclusion to each story. There was a moment that the ark door closed and it was too late to get on board.  Jesus told us "it will be like it was in the days of Noah" when he chooses to return.  My prayer is that I will live in such a way that I'm able to hear God and live in mission with each day that I live. Like Noah, my family will benefit or hurt from how I choose to live!