Strong in the Storm

April 16, 2009

Some time before Danni fell ill everywhere I turned I heard about a storm. In the scriptures, in the secular and all around from so many different sources I knew there was something big on the horizon. God often speaks to me in this way; the same message came again and again and I was grateful for the “heads up”.

Acts 27 was one of the scriptures God brought to me at that time and there are so many things in there that have caught my eye again today. In the last part of verse 9 and on into verse 10 it says this… “So Paul warned them, “Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.”

Verse 11 goes on to say this… “But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship…the majority decided that we should sail on…”

Then in verse 13 comes a haunting scenario… “When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had obtained what they wanted…” (NIV) and away they went. All the signs were good and everything was falling into place…they thought they had it all under control but it didn’t take long for them to see that they didn’t have the control they were so sure of in the beginning.

“The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along.” (Acts 27:15) So many times during that year I felt like we were just being blown along by God completely subject to his good will and mercy. It doesn’t take long for you to realize how in control God is and how not in control you are when these kind o f circumstances arise.

God is so gracious to them, in Acts 27:21 God’s man on the scene steps up and says to the crew… “Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss, but now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed.”

Paul goes on to tell of his encounter with an angel who told him these things and also of his faith in God that those things will come to pass but he tells them in verse 26… “Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island.”

They would escape with their lives but not until they had lost all and were wrecked. God will allow things in our lives to the point of wreckage in order to accomplish his will. I can’t say it enough…God is in control. These were capable men making decisions for their lives and they end up wrecked with nothing.

But God allowed these things for them to see his glory…God wants so much for us to see him and to come to him for all our needs. Psalm 55 is a cry from David’s heart he wants to “…hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.” (vs. 8)

He is in agony over the situation that he finds himself in so he cries to the Lord and has confidence in God that he will save him. Verse 22 in the Complete Jewish Bible version says this... “Unload your burden on Adonai and he will sustain you. He will never permit the righteous to be moved.”

I think of Paul and the storm he was going through in his life; he turned to God for answers and God heard his cry and came to his aide not taking him out of the circumstance but causing him to be immoveable within them! Jesus prays for us in John 17 and in verse 15 he says… “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one…”

I also experienced this in my own life. Many times Danni and the family were faced with decisions that seemed to be mountains and we would cry out to God with Danni for answers. Most of the time we wouldn’t receive an answer at that very moment but God would cause us to say…”God, we trust you please take care of us.”

I can testify that EVERY time God would work out the details of the insurmountable challenge and take care of everything. God, I praise you! I thank you for your faithfulness.

The last part of Psalms 55 says this… “But for my part, Adonai, I put my trust in you.”(CJBV)

If God did this for us HE WILL do this for you! Cry out to him today and unload the burdens you’ve been carrying.


God is faithful and you will find that you have grown tremendously in your trust in him when you look back at this time later in life. Let him work his perfect will in you to make you immoveable in your faith and trust in him no matter what storm you experience.

5 comments:

Joetta said...

thanks for sharing - your posts are encouraging and challenging... my father-in-law passed away on Easter Sunday.... wishing I could glimpse what heaven is like...

Christy said...

So sorry to hear of your loss you'll be in my prayers.

Cindy Bultema said...

Christy ~
Thank you for continuing to share your journey with us all! I am always blessed and encouraged by your words. Thank you :)
With love,
Cindy :)
(JJ's friend from MI)

Joetta/Sarasota said...

thanks for the book you sent my mother-in-law! I know she appreciates it!

Christy said...

No problem...I hope it helps, I thought it was really good.