"Riding the
Wave of Change" part 2
Troubled Waters
by
Greg Hanson
Sunrise Wesleyan Church
September 20, 2009
Memory Verse:
Psalm 34:18 (NLT)
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits
are crushed.
****************
AUDIO – Play the theme song to Gillian’s Island
Those
poor people… just out for a three hour tour that stretched out into a
three year series plus a couple TV movies. Those seven people, just out
for a cruise, suddenly finding themselves in the middle of a storm,
being tossed back and forth by the waves, just trying to survive.
Have
you ever found yourself in a situation like that? Oh, I don’t mean
literally… I just mean in life. Have you ever been sailing along
peacefully in life, and all of a sudden the storm hits? It unleashes on
you in a fury and you don’t know how you can survive?
Well, in
life, we all go through our stormy seas. We all encounter troubles
waters. And you don’t really have a choice about this. Life has its ups
and downs, for all of us.
I would say this is
the great equalizer. Because it doesn’t matter how rich you are, how
educated you are, how old you are… it doesn’t matter if you’re a man or
a woman, if you’re religious or an atheist, a wise and intelligent
person or a Montreal Canadiens fan. You’re going to face troubled
waters in life.
So what do you do when the storm hits?
Last
week here we began a brand new message series called “Riding the Wave
of Change.” And we talked specifically about the major life changes we
go through… the decisions we make that affect our lives and how we can
keep our balance when going through them. And mostly we talked about
the planned or expected life changes… like getting married, starting a
job, moving to a new location, starting a new school… those things that
we usually have some kind of control over but they still throw us for a
loop.
Well, today, we’re going to talk about the changes in our
lives that we don’t have much if any control over… the things that just
happen that aren’t so pleasant… the troubles that come our way. Like
losing a job, or encountering health problems, or suffering a major
loss in life. What do you do when those kinds of storms hit?
Because let me tell you something… No matter who you are…
You are...
• Heading into a storm
• Currently going through a storm, or
• Just coming out of a storm
So
what we’re going to do this morning to help us learn to deal with these
storms is take a look at an actual storm that happen it October about
1950 years ago. The account is found in the Bible in the book of Acts,
and Jasmine just read it for us.
Let me give you some
background. The Apostle Paul… an early follower of Christ and the man
primarily responsible for spreading the news about Jesus beyond the
Jewish community… had been arrested and was to stand trial.
In
that era, being a leader of any religious sect without Roman approval
was against the law, and causing riots and dissention in the Empire was
considered treason against Caesar and was punishable by death. So these
Jewish religious leaders who felt threatened by Paul and by this
emerging Christian church came up with a plan… they caused dissention
themselves and then blamed it on Paul, they exaggerated some of Paul’s
actions, and they manufactured other charges against Paul in an attempt
to get rid of him. So Paul, being a Roman citizen, claimed his right as
a Roman citizen and appealed his case directly to Caesar, which would
be the rough equivalent of us appealing to the Supreme Court.
But
in order for that to happen, Paul needed to be transported to Rome. And
that’s when things get interesting. Let’s pull up a map and take a look
at this journey.
[PowerPoint]
The journey began here in
Jerusalem with the final destination being all the way over here on the
other end of the map. So they left Jerusalem and boarded a ship in
Caesarea. This particular ship was just traveling to different ports
along the coasts, and the plan was to find another ship in one of these
ports that was sailing for Italy.
So they set off from Caesarea
and landed the next day in Sidon, about 110 km (70 miles) north. They
set out to sea again, and encountered some prevailing winds coming out
of the west. So in order to use the island of Cyprus as protection,
they sailed up the eastern side of the island and then across the
northern side, until finally they landed in the port of Myra in Lycia.
That’s where they found a ship heading for Italy and boarded it.
But
when they set out from there, they were still battling the winds and
made slow headway. They aimed to land here in Cnidus, but the winds
wouldn’t let them hold their course, so they ended up sailing down the
eastern side of Crete, finally landing in the port of Fair Havens.
But
by now, they had lost a lot of time. In fact, it was after the Jewish
holiday of Yom Kippur, which would most likely put them in early
October. As a general rule, the Romans considered sailing after
September 15th to be questionable, and sailing after November 11th to
be suicidal. So they would have been right in the middle of that
questionable period. Paul himself warned them that their voyage would
be disastrous, but the centurion talked it over with the pilot and the
owner of the ship, and they all thought they’d be able to reach the
port of Phoenix which was more sheltered and they could spend the
winter there. (Who wouldn’t want to spend the winter in Phoenix, eh?)
But
shortly after they set off, a wind of hurricane force called the
Northeaster swept down from the island, and caught the ship. They
weren’t able to sail into the wind, and they ended up losing control of
the ship and had to go wherever the wind took them. Which is
understandable… it was six years ago next week that Hurricane Juan hit
us. Imagine if you were out on a ship when Juan hit. I don’t think you
would have stood much of a chance, either. And we only had to deal with
Juan for what, an hour or two? Paul and the gang had to endure it for
fourteen days!
So for fourteen days they were tossed about by
this storm. During that time, they lightened the ship by throwing their
cargo and equipment overboard, they cut their lifeboat loose, they went
without eating, and for many days they couldn’t see the sun or stars,
which would have made navigation impossible. They had no idea where
they were and they lost all hope of being saved.
I want to read
to you the rest of this account from Acts 27. It’s a longer section, so
just listen for a while. I’m going to read it from the Message
paraphrase of the Bible. Luke is the writer of Acts, and is traveling
with Paul, so he writes in the first person…
Acts 27:21-44 (The Message)
With
our appetite for both food and life long gone, Paul took his place in
our midst and said, "Friends, you really should have listened to me
back in Crete. We could have avoided all this trouble and trial. But
there's no need to dwell on that now. From now on, things are looking
up! I can assure you that there'll not be a single drowning among us,
although I can't say as much for the ship--the ship itself is doomed.
"Last
night God's angel stood at my side, an angel of this God I serve,
saying to me, "Don't give up, Paul. You're going to stand before Caesar
yet--and everyone sailing with you is also going to make it.' So, dear
friends, take heart. I believe God will do exactly what he told me. But
we're going to shipwreck on some island or other."
On the fourteenth
night, adrift somewhere on the Adriatic Sea, at about midnight the
sailors sensed that we were approaching land. Sounding, they measured a
depth of one hundred twenty feet, and shortly after that ninety feet.
Afraid that we were about to run aground, they threw out four anchors
and prayed for daylight.
Some of the sailors tried to jump ship.
They let down the lifeboat, pretending they were going to set out more
anchors from the bow. Paul saw through their guise and told the
centurion and his soldiers, "If these sailors don't stay with the ship,
we're all going down." So the soldiers cut the lines to the lifeboat
and let it drift off.
With dawn about to break, Paul called everyone
together and proposed breakfast: "This is the fourteenth day we've gone
without food. None of us has felt like eating! But I urge you to eat
something now. You'll need strength for the rescue ahead. You're going
to come out of this without even a scratch!"
He broke the bread,
gave thanks to God, passed it around, and they all ate heartily-- 276
of us, all told! With the meal finished and everyone full, the ship was
further lightened by dumping the grain overboard.
At daybreak, no
one recognized the land--but then they did notice a bay with a nice
beach. They decided to try to run the ship up on the beach. They cut
the anchors, loosed the tiller, raised the sail, and ran before the
wind toward the beach. But we didn't make it. Still far from shore, we
hit a reef and the ship began to break up.
The soldiers decided to
kill the prisoners so none could escape by swimming, but the centurion,
determined to save Paul, stopped them. He gave orders for anyone who
could swim to dive in and go for it, and for the rest to grab a plank.
Everyone made it to shore safely.
So just to finish up the map,
this is where they crashed on the Island of Malta. They spent the next
three months there, until after the winter and they were able to board
another ship heading to Rome.
That’s a physical storm that Paul
and everyone on board the ship had to endure. And from that, we’re
going to identify five steps we need to take when we encounter storms
in our own lives.
When You Encounter a Storm in Life…
1. Embrace God
Most
people, when they encounter a storm, have one of two reactions as it
relates to God. They either do this [push]… or they do this [embrace].
They either blame Him and push Him away or they, turn to Him and
embrace Him. Which do you do?
Obviously, I believe the best
response is to embrace Him. You can turn to Him and trust Him… you can
count on Him… you can embrace Him… He will be there for you… and He
will see you through.
In that storm on the Mediterranean, Paul
depended on God. And God responded by sending a messenger to care for
Him and encourage Him. In verse, 23, Paul told the other men on the
ship…
Acts 27:23 (NLT)
“For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve
stood beside me…”
I
believe that one of the things that helped Paul was knowing that He
wasn’t alone… that God was on his side. So Paul told the other people
on the ship about this God to whom He belonged. But it wasn’t a god who
was removed from his creation, it wasn’t a god who was feasting on
grapes on top of Mount Olympus, it wasn’t a god who was someplace
beyond the stars. It was a God who was right there with Paul going
through the storm with him.
Theologically, we talk about God as
being both Transcendent (meaning that He is above and beyond all
possible experience and knowledge and exists above this material
existence) as well as being Immanent (meaning that He is right here
right now, intricately involved in the tapestry of our lives). He cares
for you.
And sometimes that’s all you need to help you through a
storm: to know that you’re not alone. I love this verse from the Old
Testament book of Isaiah… God says…
Isaiah 43:2 (NLT)
When
you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through
rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the
fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not
consume you.
That verse is included in your notes this morning.
I want you to do something… take your pens and put a box around the
words “I will be with you.” That’s a guarantee. Notice something else:
it says “When you go through…” You’re not given an exemption from hard
times. You’re going to have to face them at one time or another. But
when you go through the storm, He goes through it with you. Read this
with me…
Psalm 23:4 (NLT)
Even when I walk through the
darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your
rod and your staff protect and comfort me.
VIDEO – from SermonVideos.com – WALKING ON WATER
Well,
Paige certainly is an inspiring person, isn’t she? I love how she has
chosen to turn to God… to trust Him… to embrace Him. And she’s right…
Christ-followers do seem to have a different outlook on life, even in
the midst of a storm. But I do disagree with her on one thing… I don’t
believe our trials are necessarily part of God’s plan. I think He can
use them, I think he can bring good out of them, but I think a lot of
stuff that happens is no where’s close to what His plan for us is. So
that brings us to the second thing…
2. Recognize the cause of the storm and
move past it
Sometimes
the storms we encounter in life are the result of poor decisions we’ve
made along the way. I mean, we want to point fingers, we want to blame
other people, we want to blame God… but the truth is, we’re the ones to
blame. Not always, but many times the storms we encounter are of our
own making. Our health problems, our financial problems, our relational
problems… a lot of times they’re preventable. Again, not always, but
often.
But sometimes things do just seem to happen. And there
doesn’t seem to be any reason for it… no one’s really at fault… so who
do we blame? Well, a lot of people blame God.
In fact, there’s a
legal term which every one of you has heard before… “Act of God.” When
there doesn’t seem to be any reason for something, when no one’s really
at fault, we feel like we’ve got to blame someone so we blame it on God.
Isn’t it interesting that for some people this is the only time they’ll
ever acknowledge God… when they’re blaming Him?
But
really, I think God gets blamed for a lot more than He should. I think
most times our storms are our own fault, the fault of someone else, or
just the result of living in a sin-stained world. The sin of humanity
has corrupted not just us but all of creation. And so, bad things
happen. To all of us. Storms happen because we live in a sin-stained
world.
In the case of the storm in Acts 27, it was their own
fault they were in the storm. Paul had warned them not to set sail… he
told them it’d be disastrous… but no, they thought they could make it
as far as the next port. And that was the reason they were stuck in the
storm. In fact, Paul points that out…
Acts 27:21 (The Message)
Paul
took his place in our midst and said, “Friends, you really should have
listened to me back in Crete. We could have avoided all this trouble
and trial.”
“Told you so.” So Paul’s acknowledging the reason
they’re stuck in a storm. It was a decision they made to leave port.
But I think what he says next is really important…
Acts 27:22 (The Message)
“But there's no need to dwell on that now.”
We
talked about this a bit last week. Instead of living in the past,
instead of blaming God, blaming others, or even blaming ourselves, we
need to recognize the cause of the storm but then move forward.
3. Believe God’s Promises
When
the angel of the Lord appeared to Paul, the angel promised Paul that
everything would work out. That was the message God had sent the angel
to deliver… that everything would be all right. That they would survive
the storm.
So, wouldn’t you expect that God would immediately
calm the storm? I mean, Jesus Himself demonstrated that kind of power
and authority. But did it happen? No, the storm raged on. But still,
Paul believed the promise and he clung to it. In fact, Paul told the
other men…
Acts 27:25 (NLT)
“So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as He said.”
Our
God is a God of integrity. He has never broken a promise, he has never
gone back on His word, He has never failed, and He never will. Believe
His promises. Cling to them.
So what promises does He make to us today? Well, here’s one…
Psalm 34:18 (NLT)
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits
are crushed.
That’s a promise God makes to you… to be close to you when you are
brokenhearted and to rescue you. Believe Him.
God also promises that He will be with you always. Believe Him.
God promises you can do all things through Christ. Believe Him.
God promises that He can do exceeding abundantly more than you could
ever ask or even think. Believe Him.
God promises strength to the weary. Believe Him.
God promises comfort for those who mourn. Believe Him.
God promises victory for those who maintain their faith in Him. Believe
Him.
God promises rewards for those who are mistreated because of their
faith. Believe Him.
God promises His peace when you go through a storm in life. Believe Him.
And
to all Christ-followers, God promises a future home in Heaven where
there will be no more pain, no more suffering, no more loss, no more
sickness, no more death. Believe Him.
This Book (the Bible) is
packed full of promises that God has made, and perhaps He has made some
to you personally. Believe Him. He will not back out on His promises.
You can trust Him.
4. Appreciate the blessings of God
Recognize
the blessings of God. Even when you’re smack dab in the middle of a
personal storm, whatever it may be, take the time to recognize and
appreciate the blessings of God.
Acts 27:35 (NLT)
Then he took some bread, gave thanks to God before them all, and broke
off a piece and ate it.
What
a strange thing to do. The ship is in danger of capsizing, the crew has
been battling hurricane force winds for two weeks, and Paul gives
thanks? What does he have to be thankful for?
Well, no lives had
been lost, they still had some food to eat, and God had given them that
great promise that everything would work out. So really, they had a lot
to be thankful for.
And you know, it’s not a bad idea to look
for the blessings of God even in the midst of a storm. The blessings
may not be all that evident at first, but look for them and they’ll be
there. And that can have a tremendous impact on your own attitude and
perspective.
I think this is something we really need to pay
attention to. Because it’s so easy for us to gripe and complain when
everything seems to be working against us, but all that does is
increase the intensity of the storm.
But what happens when you
find something to be grateful for? Suddenly the storm doesn’t seem to
be as bad. Oh, your circumstances may not have changed, the storm may
still be raging, but your perspective changes. Take a look at what
happened to the men on the ship after Paul gave thanks…
Acts 27:36-37 (NLT)
Then everyone was encouraged and began to eat—all 276 of us who were on
board.
Men
who had been so stressed out that they didn’t even have appetites for
two weeks, suddenly were encouraged and were able to eat and regain
some of their strength. And I think you would find the same response in
your own life. Count your blessings, take note of what you have to
thank God for, in spite of the storm you’re going through, and it will
lift your spirits and help you make it through.
5. Eliminate Excess Baggage
Acts 27:38 (NLT)
After eating, the crew lightened the ship further by throwing the cargo
of wheat overboard.
[Notice the very important punctuation in this verse. It’s “After
eating, the crew…” not “After eating the crew, …”]
The
crew onboard the ship lightened their load and increased their chances
of survival by physically throwing the cargo overboard. The storm they
were in forced them to decide if they wanted to save their stuff or if
they wanted to save their lives.
In our personal storms, we are
also confronted with the opportunity to recognize what is truly
important. And as difficult as it can be, our storms can actually help
us clarify our priorities.
When you’re going through a financial
storm, suddenly that high definition plasma screen TV doesn’t seem all
that important, does it? When you’re going through a health crisis,
that promotion at work is no longer your primary concern. When you have
a relational crisis, that trip you’ve been saving for kind of gets put
on the back burner. When you lose your job, accumulating the latest
toys and gadgets slips down your list of priorities.
And what
are you left with? What do you find is really important? Well, Family,
friends, faith… those are the kinds of things that come to the
forefront. And it’s those things that can help you through the storm.
VIDEO – from BluefishTV.com – THE STORY BEHIND THE HYMN: IT IS WELL
WITH MY SOUL
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