HOPE

…Paul and several other prisoners…

…Putting out to see from there, we encountered headwinds that made it difficult to keep the ship on course…

…We had several days of rough sailing, and after great difficulty we finally neared Cnidus…But the wind was against us…We struggled along the coast with great difficulty…The weather was becoming dangerous for long voyages by then because it was late in the fall…

…When a light wind began blowing from the south, the sailors thought they could make it…But the weather changed abruptly, and a wind of typhoon strength (a “noreaster,” they called it) caught the ship and blew it out to sea.  They couldn’t turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale…

…We sailed behind a small island named Cauda, where with great difficulty we hoisted aboard the lifeboat that was being towed behind us.  Then we banded the ship with ropes to strengthen the hull.  The sailors were afraid of being driven across to the sandbars of Syrtis off the African coast, so they lowered the sea anchor and were thus driven before the wind…

…The next day, as gale-force winds continued to batter the ship, the crew began throwing the cargo overboard.  The following day they even threw out the ship’s equipment and anything else they could lay their hands on.   The terrible storm raged unabated for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone…

…Finally, Paul called the crew together…But take courage!…For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me, and he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul…’  So take courage!  For I believe God.  It will be just as he said…

…on the fourteenth night of the storm, as we were driven across the Sea of Adria…

…As the darkness gave way to the early morning light, Paul begged everyone to eat…Then he took some bread, gave thanks to God before them all, and broke off a piece and ate it…Then everyone was encouraged, and all 276 of us began eating…

…they saw a bay with a beach and wondered if they could get between the rocks and get the ship safely to shore…they headed for shore…But the ship hit a shoal and ran aground.  The bow of the ship stuck fast, while the stern was repeatedly smashed by the force of the waves and began to break  apart…everyone escaped safely ashore!  Acts 27

Wow!  Sounds like Luke and Paul weathered quite the storm.  They weathered a physical storm, but it’s not too much different than the storms of our days, is it?  The storm they weathered was two weeks long.  The storms we weather sometimes feels like 14 days, 14 months, 14 years, or longer, don’t they?

Anyone else out there feeling a little shipwrecked?  Tired of answering the phone?  Tired of the rough sailing of life?  Feeling battered against the rocks?  Pulled under by another wave?  Broken apart?  Are we tossed about?  Have we lost precious cargo?  Do we feel blown off course and like we’re not going to land in calm waters ever again?  Have we lost sight of the sun and we can only see the darkness?  Are we crying out like the sailors…No more death!  No more  illness!  No more brokenness!  No more hurt!  No more pain!  No more!!  No more!!  No more!!

Paul’s words in the midst of his shipwreck give us hope.  He said:  Take courage! Translated, it actually means be of good cheer!  What in the world?  Paul doesn’t say it once, but thrice in this passage.  Be of good cheer!  Again, what in the world?  In the midst of my shipwreck happening I’m to be cheerful?  The Greek word for cheer actually means positive passion – be of good cheer, in good spirits.  Hmmm.

In the middle, in the literal depths of the storm, how in the world could Paul be of good cheer, in good spirits?  Why in the world, in this horrible, treacherous storm, in a boat that was carrying Paul as a prisoner to Italy could he say don’t be afraid?

For I believe God.  It will be just as he said.

No matter what Paul was going through, as difficult as the storms were, he believed God.  He believed that God was a God of promises and if God said it, it would be just as He said.  That’s faith.  It’s easy to have faith when there are calm waters, right? But it’s a bit more difficult to have unwavering, committed faith in the middle of a noreaster.  But if we look at what God has promised us it’s much easier to embrace our faith. What has God promised us?  He has promised us love, forgiveness, rest, encouragement, eternal life, complete freedom, compassion, care, protection, healing, that He will walk beside us, that he will send us a helper — the Holy Spirit. 

Life is difficult, there are no two-ways about that.  We can’t escape difficulties on this earth.  However, God has given us all the tools we need to keep the ship upright during the storms.  One of the things the crew on the ship headed to Italy did was to pull the lifeboat inside — think about that metaphorically, it’s exceedingly clear. Another thing the crew did was band the ship with ropes to strengthen the hull.  It means what it says, wrapping the ship in ropes to hold it together.  Think about that for a minute.  In the depths of a raging 14 day storm, somehow, they got under the boat with a rope, and just kept wrapping it around until the boat was bundled, held together, and completely secure.

Do we pull in our Lifeboat when the seas get rocky? What holds our hulls together during the storm?  Do we wrap ourselves with His Word?  Do we lean into His promises?    Do we lean into His people for encouragement and to encourage?  We can’t escape the storms but we can go to The One who will help us land on the island. 

It will be just as He said.  We must believe that.