|
|
 |
| Surviving
A Shipwreck |
|
| Bubba
Garner |
|
You would think you were reading a novel.
A ship full of prisoners rocked by violent winds and waves. A
storm so fierce that neither the sun nor stars were seen for
several days. A situation so desperate that it led to the loss
of the cargo, the boat, but not one life. Hollywood couldn’t
touch this story. It was scripted by God Himself.
It’s hard to read Acts 27 without thinking of 2 Corinthians
11. It’s hard to read 2 Corinthians 11, period. Among the
“light afflictions” suffered in his service as a soldier of
the cross, Paul lists “three times I was shipwrecked, a night
and a day I have spent in the deep” (2 Cor. 11:25). Even
though that was written before his experience at the end of
Acts, it gives us a glimpse of all Paul had been through as he
made his final voyage to Rome.
I have never been shipwrecked. In fact, the only time I was on a
boat, I got seasick. But I have witnessed people whose lives
were wrecked by catastrophe. I have seen hopes that were dashed
on the rocks. I have experienced the helpless feeling of sinking
to rock bottom. And the principles Paul used to deal with his
disaster in Acts 27 are the same ones that all of us can put to
use as we seek to handle our own storms of life.
Listen to the voice of experience. With
the ship safely in Fair Havens and the storm season ahead of
them, Paul admonished his captors, “Men, I perceive that the
voyage will certainly be attended with damage and great loss”
(Acts 27:10). While some argue that to be divine perception, the
Greek word literally means “to perceive from past
experience.” Remember, Paul had already endured three
shipwrecks. He knew that it was dangerous to put out to sea that
late in the year. “But the centurion was more persuaded by the
pilot and the captain than by what was being said by Paul”
(Acts 27:11). How he must have regretted that decision in the
days that followed!
When life throws questions at us, we want the right answers.
When uncertainty surrounds us, we need something that cannot be
shaken or moved. Do not fear; we have an anchor. Consider Jesus,
our High Priest, who “has been tempted in all things as we
are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15). He can sympathize with our
weaknesses. He can help solve our problems. He knows what it
feels like to be in the middle of a storm in the middle of the
sea. Listen to His voice. You won’t regret it.
Navigate more toward prayer.
Paul’s faith in God helped keep the ship together. When an
angel assured him that their voyage would not be met with death,
he told the men, “keep up your courage, for I believe God that
it will turn out exactly as I have been told” (Acts 27:25).
When the sailors feared that they would run into the rocks,
“they let down four anchors from the stern and prayed for day
to come” (Acts 27:29). And even when Paul convinced them to
eat after fourteen days of work and worry, they did so only
after he “took bread and gave thanks to God” (Acts 27:35).
Prayer was one thing that was not tossed overboard.
We expect the preacher to tell us to pray. We anticipate that
the “wise” counsel of the elders or our parents or our
spouse will be, “you need to pray about this.” But have you
ever tried it? It works! Instead of relying on your own strength
and skill, turn to Him who can command the wind and still the
sea. When you’re encompassed by the night of mourning, pray
for morning to come. And when you begin to see your way out but
still aren’t safely to shore, stop and give thanks to God. He
will carry you through.
Hold on to what you have. With
land finally in sight, they steered toward the beach only to hit
a reef that would let them go no further. As the waves beat
against the boat, causing it break up, their only option was to
abandon ship and swim for shore. Those who could not swim
grabbed hold of planks and other pieces of the ship and paddled.
“And so it happened that they were all brought safely to
land” (Acts 27:44).
You can’t expect every situation to be ideal. The pieces of
life’s puzzle seldom fall exactly along the course you have
plotted out. Instead of drowning in the discouragement of one
calamity after another, reach for a plank. You may not be able
to have everything, but you can hold on to what you do have.
Amid all the uncertainties and unknowns on the horizon, stand
firm on the ground that “I know whom I have believed and I am
convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him
until that day” (2 Tim. 1:12). Just hold on and keep moving
toward higher ground.
Surviving a shipwreck is one thing. Weathering how ever many it
takes to safely reach the port of heaven, that’s another
story.
|
|
Copyright (C)
2008
Southside Church of Christ
All rights reserved.
|
|
|
