To
navigate through storms I must:
Recognize
Godly leadership
When the time came, we set sail for Italy.
Paul and several other prisoners were placed in the custody of a Roman officer
named Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment. …(the ship) was scheduled to make several
stops at ports along the coast of the province. The next day when we docked at
Sidon, Julius was very kind to Paul and let him go ashore to visit with friends
so they could provide for his needs. Putting out to sea from there, we
encountered strong headwinds that made it difficult to keep the ship on course…
Keeping to the open sea, we passed along the coast…landing at Myra, in the
province of Lycia. There the commanding officer found an Egyptian ship from
Alexandria that was bound for Italy, and he put us on board. ACTS 27:1-6 NLT
Listen
to Godly
leadership
We had several days of slow sailing, and
after great difficulty we finally neared Cnidus. But the wind was against us,
so we sailed across to Crete and along the sheltered coast of the island, past
the cape of Salmone. We struggled along the coast with great difficulty and
finally arrived at Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea. We had lost a lot of
time. The weather was becoming dangerous for sea travel because it was so late
in the fall, and Paul spoke to the ship’s officers about it. “Men,” he said, “I
believe there is trouble ahead if we go on—shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger
to our lives as well.” ACTS 27:7-10 NLT
Godly leadership will tell me what I need
to hear not just what I want to hear
Take
ownership for my bad decisions
But
the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and
the owner than to Paul. And since Fair Havens was an exposed harbor—a poor
place to spend the winter—most of the crew wanted to go on to Phoenix, farther
up the coast of Crete, and spend the winter there. Phoenix was a good harbor
with only a southwest and northwest exposure. When a light wind began blowing
from the south, the sailors thought they could make it. So they pulled up
anchor and sailed close to the shore of Crete. But the weather changed
abruptly, and a wind of typhoon strength (called a “northeaster”) burst across
the island and blew us out to sea. ACTS 27:11-14 NLT
Develop
a new strategy
…Then the sailors bound ropes around the hull
of the ship to strengthen it. They were afraid of being driven across to the
sandbars…so they lowered the sea anchor to slow the ship and were 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 took some
of the ship’s gear and threw it overboard. The terrible storm raged for many
days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone. ACTS 27:17-20 NLT
Remember
to do the basics
Just as day was dawning, Paul urged everyone
to eat. “You have been so worried that you haven’t touched food for two weeks,”
he said. “Please eat something now for your own good… 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 began to eat—all 276 of us who were on board. ACTS 27:33-37 NLT
Look
at God’s blessings, not my losses
…
Finally, Paul called the crew together and said, “Men, you should have listened
to me in the first place and not left Crete. You would have avoided all this
damage and loss. But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even
though the ship will go down. 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,
for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness
has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’ So take courage! For I
believe God. It will be just as he said. But we will be shipwrecked on an
island.” ACTS 27:21-26 NLT