Since many were going without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “You men should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete and sustain this damage and loss. Now I urge you to take courage, because there will be no loss of any of your lives, but only the ship.
For this night an angel of the God I belong to and serve stood by me, and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And look! God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’     Acts 27:21-24 HCSB

Paul was formerly Saul. He had gone from persecuting Christians to being one and encouraging others to serve Christ. In this Scripture passage, Paul has been taken prisoner and is being transported to Rome to stand before Caesar. Paul had already advised this sailing crew that this was not a good time to sail and doing so could cause loss of life and the ship. But, they had not listened to him. After all, he was merely a prisoner on board.

Now, as what Paul said began to come true and they were facing stormy seas, they began to take note of what Paul was saying. Paul was in close relationship with the Lord. He stayed in constant communication with Him. So, I’m sure that being in this storm tossed boat on the sea kept him in constant prayer. I love what Paul says in verse 24, “the God I belong to and serve.” Paul is confident in his relationship with Jesus Christ. He serves God and he belongs to Him.

Can you say that? There were many years I could say I believed in God and that I loved God, but I couldn’t have truthfully said I belonged to Him. I could not have said I serve Him. In that case you could really question whether or not I truly believed in Him and loved Him. You see, you have to really know someone to love them. I didn’t really understand God’s awesome power. I didn’t really understand the unconditional love He had for me. My life was like a stormy sea. I was being tossed back and forth like a small boat on a big stormy sea. I was headed for disaster.

But, then I trusted God. I gave it all over to Him. He calmed the stormy sea. It’s not always smooth sailing, but with Him in control, I have no need to fear.

In Acts 27, Paul goes from being merely a prisoner on board to the one who is calling the shots in order to get them safely to shore. God has sent His angel to Paul to let him know that no one was going to die.

As they listened to Paul, they were able to survive. My friend, if you are not in close relationship and communication with Jesus, you are headed for a shipwreck. You may think all is well and that you have everything under control, but this will not last.

Years ago when I lived on the water, I loved being out on the boat. From the canal behind my house to the lake was about a 30 minute trip. There were many times I can remember leaving my house on a sunny day and going out to the lake. There was a swimming hole out there where we would sometimes gather to swim and soak up the sunshine and enjoy the beautiful views. But at times a storm would come up out of nowhere. The sky would turn black and the winds would begin to rage. We knew this meant we needed to head home. We knew this would bring choppy seas and lightning strikes.

Paul warned the sailors against setting sail. He warned it would bring disaster, but they didn’t listen. We often do things that God has told us not to do oblivious to the consequences. Then when the storm comes we are regretting our decision.

If your life is like a stormy sea, trust God. Turn to Jesus, He can calm the storm and bring you safely to shore. Don’t be shaken when you face the storms in life. Know that God’s got this and He will bring you safely through.

Paul suffered beatings, stoning, numerous imprisonments and shipwreck, but he never lost faith in God. God had given Paul a job to do and Paul was faithful to the end.

My friend whether you are experiencing smooth sailing, are in a storm, have just come through a storm or can see a storm on the horizon, know that you can trust in Jesus. Know that He can calm the raging sea. Give it all over to Him and trust Him to guide you safely to shore.

Have a great day!