Acts
27 opens with Paul beginning his voyage to Rome. Because the group had left
late in the year, the weather conditions were poor (v. 9). This made sailing dangerous.
However, the majority decided to continue on their voyage, rather than try to
find a suitable harbour in which to spend winter (v. 12). We see immediately
that the wisdom of the crowd is not always very wise. They immediately
encountered a rough storm and had to throw cargo overboard (v. 14-20). Again,
Paul was able to remain strong because of the Word of God (v. 22-25). God had
given Paul a prophetic message that nobody on the ship would die because of the
storm. Paul was then able to speak this message to the group to encourage them
to remain strong. At this time, Paul became an informal leader of the group. By
remaining hopeful and steadfast, he earned their respect. We see that played
out as they followed his advice on the rest of their journey (v. 31-32, 34-36).
This respect for Paul was a direct benefit for all of the prisoners. When the
boat was shipwrecked, the soldiers wanted to kill all of the prisoners to
prevent their escape (v. 42). “But the centurion wanted to spare Paul’s life
and kept them from carrying out their plan” (v. 43). Our personal submission to
God’s plan can bless the people around us in ways we could not have imagined.
Journaling and Prayer
1. Scripture tells us that we are blessed when we
do not follow the advice of the wicked (Psalm 1:1). If Paul would have blindly
followed the decision of the group instead of pursuing God the entire group
could have died. While most of our daily situations aren’t so extreme, we are
still clearly warned to avoid placing our hope in the advice of the world.
Search your heart: where does the advice you follow come from? God gives us
many practical ways to seek His advice. Ask Him how you can seek His advice
through each of the following methods:
a.
Scripture
b.
Prayer/listening prayer
c.
Seeking counsel from trusted, mature believers
2. God desires to give us everything we need to
stay strong through whatever circumstances we face. We only have to ask! Think
of been a time when God has spoken something that has encouraged you or helped
you endure a difficult situation. Spend some time in thanksgiving for this. Is
there currently any area of your life where you need God’s help to stay strong?
Ask God to speak to you about this area.
3. Pray for the voice of the Lord to be heard
across our country. Pray that many people would hear the comfort and strength
God want to speak to them. Pray that believers in our community would
continually turn to God, through prayer and the Bible, for their source of
wisdom.
