By Gina Caswell Kelly
We all have many storms and trials in our lives. This is a given. Even as Christians, we are not exempt from troubles, in fact sometimes I think Christians have even more, as the devil tries to attack us in an attempt to weaken our faith. But we stand strong against his tactics! We have been studying through the book of Acts in my Sunday school class. Last week, we talked about the horrible storm and resulting shipwreck of the ship on the way to Rome to take Paul to testify before Caesar.
The storm was basically a typhoon type storm. The scriptures tell us that the sailors did not see the sun for many days. They began to try to lighten the load and throw cargo overboard. Nothing really helped. They went days without eating. One day Paul, who was a prisoner, told the crew and other prisoners to “Take heart! An angel appeared to me last night and stood beside me. He said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You will stand before Caesar and God has graciously granted to you all the lives of those on board.” What words of comfort! Paul continued and told the men, “Keep up your courage. I have faith in God that it will happen just as He told me.” In the dark days of this horrible storm, what words of faith from this great man of God.
As I told my class on Sunday, there are six really good lessons from this storm and shipwreck.
1. Remember to whom you belong. Jesus Christ absolutely!
2. Remember what He has said. He has promised to be with you in all things.
3. Encourage others. Even as you are in a storm, you can be an encouragement to others.
4. Don’t quit praying and don’t quit witnessing. Pray all the way through your storm and use that storm and the strength from God to be a witness to others.
5. Use common sense. Don’t stand on a railroad track and pray for God to protect you. Use the brain He gave you!
6. Give thanks always. In all things, even in the midst of storms, there is always something for which to be thankful.
I hope you will remember these six lessons. Take some time and read Acts 27. It is a really good read! And remember who your Father is. Trust Him in the storms, as well as in the sunny days of life. It will make a difference!
