And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. – Colossians 2:6-7 (NLT)

What great instructions for us! Paul is very clear about what comes after our salvation decision – we are to continue and to grow and to build our lives on him. When we remain in Him, rooted and established, daily spending time in God’s presence, we will grow. There will always be a next step and more understanding to be gained as we continue to follow Him, growing stronger each day. But this growth cannot take place apart from the source, which takes me back to three of my favorite passages of my Scripture: John 15, Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17.

Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me. I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who He is – when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples – John 15:4-8 (The Message).

But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit – Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NLT).

But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers – Psalm 1:2-3 (NIV).

Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness (2:7b). This morning my coffee cups overflows with thankfulness – I choose to be thankful for God’s provision, thankful for God’s faithfulness, thankful for opportunities, thankful for friends, thankful for His Church, and thankful for the close relationship I share with Him. God is so good and we have so much to be thankful for.

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority. – Colossians 2:8-11

I love how the Message rewords these verses: You don’t need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him.

Several times in my life I have been asked how I know Christ is alive or that He is real and the answer is in the experience of Christ. Once you have experienced Jesus, and as you remember what your life was like before you committed to Him, there’s no doubt of who He is and the difference He has made in your life. It is another hidden treasure as we get to know the mystery of Christ living within us (Col. 1:27, 2:3). In this personal relationship with Jesus, we experience fullness or as the NLT states it – So you also are complete through your union with Christ (2:10) – and that is enough evidence for me!

Let’s read on to the next few verses where Paul describes the difference Jesus makes in the lives of His followers.

When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision – the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you ALIVE WITH CHRIST, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. – Colossians 2:11-14

Praise God! More evidence that Christ is real – the change of who we are. We are no longer the person we were before we were raised to new life in Him. We are forgiven, we have been buried with Christ through baptism, and we know what it is to trust God and be filled to overflowing with peace and thankfulness.

Jesus is real. How do I know? The evidence is in my life and in the lives of God’s people all around me – lives changed and made complete through their union with Christ made possible by the cross.

When you were dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you ALIVE WITH CHRIST. He forgave us all our sin, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. – Colossians 2:13-15 (NIV).

Let’s go back to where we ended last week in Colossians, chapter 1. It is in God’s presence that He makes known “the glorious riches of this mystery, which is CHRIST IN YOU, the hope of glory” (v.27 NIV). It is our union with Christ, our intimate walk that gives us hope – hope for us and for those watching us. So the secret of the mystery is to allow God to bring us into His presence and then remain there, allowing God to fill us so that He can work through us. It is in the “remaining” that we continue in our faith and produce a life that is worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him in every way.

Colossians 2 continues with this same thought. “I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God’s great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we’ve been shown that mystery!” – 2:2-3 (The Message)

The New Living Translation says it a different way: I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. – Colossians 2:2-3

Paul wanted his readers to understand God’s ways, His plan. In order for this to happen, he knew they needed to understand Christ Himself because it is in Christ where all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge exist. By getting to know Christ, the mysteries of God are unlocked and revealed. It is through Christ that we have a relationship with God Himself.

There are going to be times in our lives where we struggle to wrap our minds around the “whys” of life. There are going to be times when understanding God’s plan in the midst of our circumstances is a struggle. It is in those moments that we need to draw closer to Christ instead of pulling away in reaction to our hurt or confusion. It is at those times that we need the wisdom and knowledge that is found in Christ. We may not understand God’s plan but, when we have a relationship with God, we can trust His supremacy in any and every situation.

This morning I read through my morning coffee devotional from the last time I was in Colossians, chapter 2. Reading through what I wrote on April 16, 2012 brought back all the emotion of what was going on in the life of our family on that Monday morning. It was the Monday after Scott was elected District Superintendent of Northwestern Illinois District Church of the Nazarene. It was the day after we had announced to the Church family we loved so much that we would be leaving. This is what I wrote on that Monday morning:

“This weekend our lives took a turn we were not anticipating and I have to admit I spent most of the last two days trying to get my head to stop spinning. I needed to have conversations with several people that required me to explain something that I simply cannot put into words. The only thing I am confident about at this point is that I gave my life to God a long time ago, surrendering to His sovereignty and committing that I am willing to go anywhere He wants me to go and do anything He wants me to do.

“Understanding God’s plan is sometimes a mystery but it was encouraging to be reminded this morning that in seeking to understand the mystery there is treasure to be found – treasures of wisdom and knowledge, confidence and rest. I sure could use all four of those right now!…”

Perhaps where you are at this morning requires the kind of faith I needed 18 months ago. My prayer for you this morning is that you will be encouraged and knit together by the strong ties of the love of Jesus. I pray God gives you complete confidence that He has a plan, even if that plan is just out of reach of your understanding this morning. I pray that you will draw closer to God today, trusting He will provide and protect you through your current circumstances.

Lord, we enter your presence with confidence that you will lavish gifts of wisdom and understanding on all of us as we seek YOUR will for our lives and as we surrender to YOUR sovereignty and trust in YOUR provision. Help us grow in our knowledge of Christ and grow in our relationship with you. May our love for you and our understanding of your love for us give us the strength to rest in you today – to simply enter in to your presence and remain there. Amen.

I am so excited about my morning coffee today – yes, both what is in the cup and what is in the Word! This morning I read through the first chapter of Colossians again. Today we are going to see how Paul wrapped it all up and tied it in a bow

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

THIS INCLUDES YOU who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. – Colossians 1:19-22 (NLT)

Just as it was the fullness of the presence of God living in Christ as He surrendered Himself on the cross, so God brings US into His presence and strengthens US as we surrender our sovereignty and let Jesus be King. He gives us the strength to do what He has asked us to do – what kind of King does that?!!

God equips us with all His glorious power so that we will have the endurance and patience we need:
We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. – Colossians 1:11

And He equips us with wisdom so that we can live the kind of holy life that produces every kind of good fruit:
So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. – Colossians 1:9-10

This brings us to the next point:

There is no POWER without PRESENCE

And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory. So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me. – Colossians 1:27b-29 (NLT)

It is in God’s presence that He makes known “the glorious riches of this mystery, which is CHRIST IN YOU, the hope of glory” (v.27 NIV). It is our union with Christ, our intimate walk that gives us hope – hope for us and for those watching us.

So the secret of the mystery is to allow God to bring us into His presence and then remain there, allowing God to fill us so that He can work through us. It is in the “remaining” that we continue in our faith and produce a life that is worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him in every way. He rescued us from darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. Let’s surrender and rest in His presence, positioning ourselves to receive the fulfillment of all of His promises.

Thank you, God, for Your presence and the power that comes from You and You alone. Amen.

As I mentioned Tuesday, we cannot earn our way into Heaven – the fruit of our lives needs to be a natural outflow of God’s presence in our lives so that He gets the glory. In the same way, holiness doesn’t have to be something we strive for or try harder to obtain, but instead a result of God’s work in our hearts. Every good and wonderful thing in our lives comes from God. It goes back to the source of our salvation, which is where our third statement from Scott’s sermon took us yesterday.

Confession time! When I first heard this point, I immediately thought, “Oh yes, in order to experience salvation I have to surrender my life to God.” And there’s nothing wrong with that thought except that once again I made it about me. It’s not all about me – something I have to often remind myself. The surrender Paul is talking about here begins with Christ’s surrender. Let’s look further at Colossians 1 but this time in The Message:

We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels – everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment…

You yourselves are a case study of what he does. At one time you all had your backs turned to God, thinking rebellious thoughts of him, giving him trouble every chance you got. But now, by giving himself completely at the cross, actually dying for you, Christ brought you over to God’s side and put your lives together, whole and holy in his presence. You don’t walk away from a gift like that! You stay grounded and steady in that bond of trust, constantly tuned in to the Message, careful not to be distracted or diverted (1:15-17,21-23a).

Christ gave himself COMPLETELY at the cross – He surrendered so that we could be reconciled to God. This brings us to the fourth point:

There is no REDEMPTION without RECONCILIATION

Christ “rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (1:14). Without this surrender, there would be no salvation, no forgiveness of sins. Jesus’ selfless act of sacrifice on the cross gives us the opportunity to be reconciled with our Creator – to the place where we started and can now find our purpose. By dying on the cross, Jesus brought us over to God’s side and put our lives together, making us whole and holy in his presence. What a gift!

And now let’s go back to making it about us, because we have a decision to make. Are we going to accept that gift? Are we going to surrender to our own plans and purpose, or accept the gift of redemption and allow God sovereignty in our lives? That means God gets to be in charge and we submit to His purpose for our lives – for our day.

Dear Jesus, thank you for loving me enough to surrender your life on the cross so that I could have an intimate walk with God – so that I could be reconciled to the One who created me and to His purposes. Thank you for bringing me from darkness into the light. I choose to start my day by submitting to your will, to your plan for my life. Please continue to do a work in my heart today. Help me to stay grounded and steady by trusting in You. Amen.

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. – Colossians 1:14-18

So Jesus is my Savior in whom I have redemption, He is my creator in whom I have purpose and He is the one thing in my life that holds everything together, that makes sense of all the pieces of my life. The question for me today as I drink my morning coffee is whether or not He is my King.

There is no SALVATION without SURRENDER.

It is no secret to those who know me well that I like to be in charge. You would have to ask my parents if I was born that way but I remember this strong desire to be the one making the decisions even as a child. One of my most humbling experiences was when I was in the fifth or sixth grade. I must have been offering too many “suggestions” in the children’s choir at church because the Director turned to me and asked me if I wanted to run practice for her. Unaware of her frustrations, I accepted her invitation, which sent her running out of the room in tears. That’s when I understood what she really meant – poor Miss Lucy.

That desire for control that runs deep within me is something God can and does use in my life, but first I have to surrender to His control. Daily I have to submit to the supremacy of Christ and surrender Lordship to Him. I don’t get to be in charge of my life – He does. When He asked me to go back to work 2 ½ years before Brooke started Kindergarten, I had to surrender my plans to be a stay at home mom. When he asked us to move to Texas, I had to surrender my career plans and my future to Him. When he asked us to move back to Illinois, I had to trust that He knew what was best for my daughters even though it hurt to watch them say goodbye to their friends.

It is in these moments of surrender that I find peace. I know I am in good hands when it is God making the decisions. If I truly want to save my life, I must lose it – I must surrender. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it- Luke 9:24.

Once again, I reread through the book of James to see what he would say about this concept of surrender. I was not disappointed but again reminded what it looks like to draw near to God: Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you … Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up – James 4:7-8a, 10.

It is only in those moments of complete surrender that I truly experience salvation. God saves me from my sins and He saves me from myself. Ever felt that way?

Yesterday we reviewed the first point of Scott’s sermon on Colossians chapter one – There is no faith without fruit. Today we move on to the more controversial statement yet in many ways a repetition of the first statement:

There is no INHERITANCE without HOLINESS

Let’s look at the same Scripture from Colossians but read on a little farther:

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then THE WAY YOU LIVE will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. – Colossians 1:9-14

I am so thankful that God did not save me and then leave me in the state that I was in. I’m so thankful His plan was for me to grow in Him. I remember when I went from being a little girl who loved Jesus enough to ask Him into her heart to a teenager who fully surrendered her heart to the Lordship of the Savior. I was so sick of myself by then – of my selfish tendencies, of my inconsistencies, and of my prideful strategies. I was ready to give up control and let God change me into the person He created me to be. His grace did not love me and then leave me the way He found me. God had a plan for my life and I have been a work in progress since that day.

I have to be careful here though. I cannot earn my way into Heaven, nor can I demand that God owes me Heaven regardless of how I live out my faith. It is the Father alone who “qualifies” or enables me to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

But the next statement gives me great hope – He has rescued me from the darkness in which He found me and His plan is not to leave me there. His plan is for me to truly experience redemption in which the forgiveness of my sins changes my life, taking me out of the darkness and bringing me into the light. He then begins a work in my life, filling me with wisdom and understanding. I begin to grow in my knowledge of Him, being strengthened by HIS power and HIS might. I go from a sinner to a child of God in whom He has developed great endurance and patience; a life that goes beyond a faith that only believes to a faith that bears fruit.

My mind goes back to the book of James again this morning. James’ letter is a call to holy living. I am going to close with a few of his words:

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him – James 1:12.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says – James 1:22.

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? …In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead … You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone – James 2:14, 17, 24.

Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness – James 3:18.

My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins – James 5:20.

Dear Jesus, thank you for the hope we find in your Word. You have saved us so that we may serve you and so today we surrender Lordship to you. Jesus, today I allow you to be King – you are in charge. Please make me into the child of God you want me to be. Amen.

While in prison, Paul spent time writing to some of the churches he had visited, as well as the church at Colosse. This congregation is believed to be a church plant from the believers in Ephesus – FRUIT from Paul’s time in Ephesus. Colossians, Ephesians, Philemon and Philippians are known as the “prison letters.”

When Colossians was written, Epaphras was visiting Paul. He told him all about how the church in Colosse was doing. Paul wrote three letters and sent them back with Tychicus to deliver to the church in Colosse, the church in Ephesus, and to a man named Philemon who lived in Colosse. This morning I chose Paul’s letter to the Colossians to read first. I would like to take the next five days to look at 5 statements I once heard my husband, Scott, make regarding this letter to the Church.

There is no FAITH without FRUIT

In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he explained to them that they are made right in God’s sight not by their own righteousness, but by God’s righteousness. He warned them of the danger of seeing all of the good things we are doing and making our salvation about what WE have done right in light of how wrong others are, forgetting that it is by HIS righteousness that we are saved and not our own.

In James’ letter, which we looked at this summer, James teaches how God wants our faith to be evident in the way we live out our lives – the way we persevere through hard times, the way we treat those around us, the way we study God’s word, the way we speak to others, and the way we submit to God – in our FRUIT.

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you way, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well” – but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless…So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. – James 2:14-17,24 (NLT)

Made right with God – that sounds a lot like Paul’s letter to the Romans. But is James agreeing or disagreeing with Paul? Let’s look at how these verses in James agree with Paul’s letter to the Christians at Colosse and then how they agree with Christ’s own words.

So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then THE WAY YOU LIVE will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good FRUIT. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. – Colossians 1:9-11a

So how can we live a life worthy of our Savior and please Him in every way:
– Produce every kind of good fruit in our lives
– Grow as you learn to know God better and better
– Be strengthened by Him so that we may have great endurance and patience

As we spend time in God’s presence, growing and learning and getting to know God more and more, we are strengthened by Him. He gives us gifts of wisdom and endurance and patience. He begins to mold and shape us into who He created us to be. This change in our hearts is evidenced by a change in our lives. We begin to live out our faith, the faith by which we are saved, and the evidence of this faith is seen in our FRUIT.

Well we are off to a good start then because we are spending time today in His word, studying Scriptures and asking for wisdom and understanding so that we may know His will for our lives – so we may grow in the knowledge of God. And what happens when we ask God to fill us with wisdom? Let’s go back to James letter to answer this question.

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. – James 1:5

And what is the product of the life of those given wisdom?

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by DEEDS done in the humility that comes from wisdom…But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good FRUIT, impartial and sincere.” – James 3:13,17

When we spend time in God’s presence and in the study of His Word, we begin to grow in wisdom and we are strengthened in our faith. It is this wisdom from God that produces the deeds. The result of this relationship – this intimacy with God – is evidenced in our FRUIT as we remain in Him all day.

“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much FRUIT. For apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5

God can make something RIGHT out of all of our WRONG. When we make a mess out of our lives by making our own decisions or doing our own thing, God is there to help us through the “shipwreck” we have created (see yesterday’s Morning Coffee). He takes this unplanned situation in our lives, the result of our sin, and makes something good out of it. We have stepped out of His will, but He is willing to display His handiwork if only we will put the broken pieces in His hands to fix. We let go and let God make something wonderful out of our mistakes and sin.

They had no plans to go to the island of Malta. When they left for Rome, the captain of the ship, the owner of the boat and the officer in charge ignored Paul’s warning that shipwreck, loss of cargo and danger to the lives of all on board were ahead if they left this late in the Fall. But they did their own thing, trusting in their own strength and knowledge, and they found themselves in the middle of a storm. When their ship fell apart, they all made it safely to the shore of the island of Malta – not their plan, but God is never without a plan and a purpose.

Praise God! He takes our wrong directions and creates a right destination. Why? Because He intends to make something good out of all the bad. Some decisions we make have consequences – “shipwrecks”. God is able to forgive us, stay by our side as we experience the results of our sin and still use our lives to impact others in a positive way. That is what happened on the island of Malta.

Once we were safe on shore, we learned that we were on the island of Malta. The people of the island were very kind to us. It was cold and rainy, so they built a fire on the shore to welcome us.

As Paul gathered an armful of sticks and was laying them on the fire, a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, bit him on the hand. The people of the island saw it hanging from his hand and said to each other, “A murderer, no doubt! Though he escaped the sea, justice will not permit him to live.” But Paul shook off the snake into the fire and was unharmed. The people waited for him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw that he wasn’t harmed, they changed their minds and decided he was a god. – Acts 28:1-6

Unfortunately, our mistakes and messes often have an audience. Even well-meaning Christians fail us and sit back expecting to see us crash and burn. There is only one audience we should concern ourselves with – God. Forgive them. Let God work on their hearts and stay focused on Him. He may even use what He makes out of your life to draw them to Himself. Don’t concern yourself with what they say or how they judge. Keep your eyes on God so that He can use you however He intends.

Near the shore where we landed was an estate belonging to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us and treated us kindly for three days. As it happened, Publius’s father was ill with fever and dysentery. Paul went in and prayed for him, and laying his hands on him, he healed him. Then all the other sick people on the island came and were other sick people on the island came and were healed. As a result we were showered with honors, and when the time came to sail, people supplied us with everything we would need for the trip. – Acts 28:7-10

God is so good! They were not even supposed to be on the island of Malta. God took their shipwreck and made great things out of the wreckage. Consider the lives of all the people on Malta that were changed forever because of Paul’s time on the island. Consider those who experienced the storm and shipwreck firsthand – the other prisoners, officers, crew – they were never the same. God provided for their safe journey on to Rome through the people of the island who had been touched by God through their time there.

Last November, a tornado destroyed a large portion of our community, skipping across Tazewell County. Homes were destroyed and families were displaced. Block after block was leveled. From the wreckage of the tornado, artists pulled out pieces of debris and created gorgeous art pieces and furniture. What a great reminder that something beautiful can come from even the most devastating of experiences.

God can take a consequence of our sin…
God can take a bad decision made out of our own self-reliance…
God can take a storm we are experiencing…
God can take our shipwreck…
AND make something really wonderful out of it! God isn’t done with us when we mess us. He can MAKE THINGS RIGHT out of our wrong. He is not done with us. He has only begun.

“Men,” he said, “I believe there is trouble ahead if we go on – shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger to our lives as well.” But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul. – Acts 27:10-11

Been there, done that. How often do we ignore the advice of others or the prompting of the Holy Spirit because we feel we have a handle on the situation? We know what is best and believe we can handle anything that might come our way. There have even been times in my life when someone pulled me aside and warned me there could be trouble ahead if I continue with my plans. In that moment, I had a choice – listen or do things my way. The officer had the same choice.

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. The sailors couldn’t turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale. – Acts 27:13-15

There are times in our lives when what first appears as a light wind becomes of wind of typhoon strength and before we know it, we have lost control of our direction. No matter how hard we try to turn things around and go in the other direction, we fail and find ourselves giving up.

We sailed along the sheltered side of a small island named Cauda, where with great difficulty we hoisted aboard the lifeboat being towed behind us. Then the sailors bound ropes around the hull of the ship to strengthen it. They were afraid of being driven across to the sandbars of Syrtis off the African coast, 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 27:16-20

In the midst of the storm, have you ever tried to keep it together on your own, like the sailors who used ropes to try to keep the ship from falling apart? Have you ever lowered anchor in order to control the situation? Things continue to get worse until there is no more light – no more hope.

No one had eaten for a long time. 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

Oh, we could all use an occasional “I told you so” but I much prefer the rest of Paul’s message – Take courage! You’ve made a mess of things and there will be consequences, but I am right here standing beside you and will keep you safe in the midst of the coming shipwreck. Like Paul, I choose to believe God – that it will be just as He said!

Thank you, God, for taking the messes we have made in our life and keeping us safe in the storms. We give up control of the situation and place this ship in your arms. Thank you for your promise to stay with us and take care of us, even in the midst of the consequences and mess we have made. You are so good to us and we love you! Amen.

An ABRUPT CHANGE – That is what Paul and those on the ship to Italy experienced. It was not a good time for water travel because it was late in the Fall and a change in weather was to be expected. Paul advised the men that there would be trouble ahead if they sailed – shipwreck, loss of cargo and danger to lives. But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul (Acts 27:11b).

Even though common sense said it was a bad idea, and even though Paul had predicted trouble if they went forward with their plan, the men did not want to spend their winter in Fair Havens. They wanted to make it at least as far as the harbor in Phoenix. Oh, how often I push forward with my own plans even though I know it is unwise!

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. The sailors couldn’t turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale (Acts 27:13-15).

This reminds me of the times when we see the error of our ways or the foolishness of our decisions. We try to change course or survive our bad decisions, but our efforts make very little difference. It seems like everything is going well, according to our plan, and then some circumstance ABRUPTLY CHANGES and we find ourselves in the middle of a storm.

Scripture says those on the boat were afraid. They tried everything. They threw cargo overboard, they bound ropes around the hull of the ship in order to strengthen it, and they even threw some of the ship’s gear overboard. They lowered the anchor and drug it in hopes of slowing the boat down but they were driven by the wind. The terrible storm raged on, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone (Acts 27:20).

DRIVEN BY THE WIND – When we give up, we often let the circumstances and the decisions of others around us drive our life. We have stopped trying to win the battle and we just let life happen. But that is not God’s desire for us. He wants to be the One driving our life – determining our direction and guiding our decisions.

Well, Paul’s story ended well. God granted safety to everyone sailing with Paul. Paul led them in a time of prayer and the next morning they saw a bay with a beach. They attempted to make it to shore but the boat ran aground in the shallow water. They jumped out of the boat and headed to shore – some swam and some floated to shore on debris from the ship (Acts 27:39-44).

Sometimes we are able to “swim” to the shore God has provided but sometimes God uses the debris from our shipwreck to get us to where He wants us to be. We find ourselves in a situation that was never God’s plan for us, but He rescues us and provides an escape when we turn to Him for help. Sometimes it is those things that were never meant to happen that God uses to take us from the disaster we have created to the haven of rest He has prepared.

For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love and sound judgment. – 2 Timothy 1:7

Thank you, God, for your goodness and for your grace. I praise you for you are a God who rescues, even when I am the cause of my need to be rescued. You are patient and you are kind. Lord, today I ask that you direct my path. I desire to follow your lead and sail down the path you have for me. I love you, Lord. Amen.