Sometimes the storms we face are the result of our own choices. We make a bad decision, ignore good advice, or head in the wrong direction and eventually experience the consequences. But other storms come through circumstances we did not choose and cannot control. Someone else makes a decision and we have to live with the consequences. Our employer changes direction, someone in our family makes a destructive choice, a relationship changes, our health takes an unexpected turn, or circumstances simply do not work out the way we expected. Those storms can be especially difficult because we may wonder why God allowed us to end up there when we were trying to do the right thing.
That is part of what makes Paul’s experience in Acts 27 so helpful. Paul was not running from God or rebelling against God’s will. He was a prisoner on his way to Rome after appealing his case to Caesar. When the journey became dangerous, Paul warned the people responsible for the ship that continuing would bring disaster and great loss. They chose not to listen. The centurion followed the advice of the pilot and the owner of the ship instead, and Paul had no choice but to go along for the ride. He did not create the problem, but he still had to endure the storm.
You Can Be in God’s Will and Still Face a Storm
One of the important lessons from Paul’s journey is that difficulty does not necessarily mean we have missed God’s will. Acts 27 describes strong winds, delays, dangerous sailing conditions, a violent storm, lost cargo, fear, hunger, and eventually a shipwreck. Yet none of those things meant God had abandoned Paul. God still intended for Paul to reach Rome, even though the journey to get there was far more difficult than Paul probably would have chosen for himself.
We sometimes assume that if God is leading us, things should go smoothly. Doors should open, people should cooperate, money should be available, and our plans should work. Scripture gives us plenty of examples showing otherwise. Faithful people can experience tremendous resistance while doing exactly what God has called them to do. The presence of a storm does not prove the absence of God.
I have experienced seasons like that myself. Years ago I came to the end of serving as pastor of a church I had started. I liked being there and had not been looking to leave, but circumstances changed and denominational leaders believed it was time for something different. Suddenly my family and I were facing a major transition. We had a house I wasn’t sure we could sell, questions about where we would live, and plenty of reasons to worry about what might happen next. Yet many of the things I feared never happened. Houses sold, doors opened, God provided, and He brought us through that season. Looking back does not make the difficulty imaginary. It reminds me that God was faithful in a situation I could not control.
Don’t Let Temporary Success Fool You
After Paul warned them not to continue the voyage, something happened that probably made his advice seem unnecessary. Acts 27:13 says that a gentle south wind began to blow, so the sailors thought they had received the opportunity they were waiting for. They pulled up the anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. For a little while, their decision appeared to be working. Then a wind of hurricane force swept down from the island and the ship was caught in the storm.
Temporary success does not necessarily mean we have made the right decision. A foolish financial choice may work for a while. An unhealthy relationship may seem good for a while. Ignoring wise counsel may appear to have no consequences at first. We can easily assume that because nothing bad happened immediately, everything must be fine. Paul’s experience reminds us to evaluate our choices by truth and wisdom rather than simply by whether circumstances happen to be going our way today.
You Can Respond Faithfully to Someone Else’s Bad Decision
Eventually the storm became so severe that the crew began throwing cargo overboard. Acts 27:20 says that when neither the sun nor the stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, they finally gave up hope of being saved. Paul could have enjoyed being proven right. He had warned them, they had ignored him, and now everyone was experiencing exactly what he said would happen. Instead of simply saying, “I told you so,” Paul moved beyond their bad decision and began helping them deal with the situation they were in now.
“So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.” – Acts 27:25 (NIV)
There is an important lesson here for the way Christians respond when people make mistakes. Sometimes we warn someone about a destructive choice and they do it anyway. The marriage suffers, the job disappears, the money is gone, or the consequences finally arrive. There may be a time to acknowledge what went wrong, but that cannot be where we stop. Grace does not pretend that bad decisions have no consequences. Grace helps people determine what faithfulness looks like from this point forward. We should be people who bring hope and help others find their next step rather than taking satisfaction in the fact that we were right.
Pray, Tell the Truth, and Do What You Can
By the fourteenth night, the sailors realized they were approaching land. They took soundings, dropped anchors, and prayed for daylight. Later some of the sailors attempted to escape secretly in the lifeboat, but Paul warned the centurion that they needed to remain with the ship. What I appreciate about this part of the account is that trusting God did not make Paul passive. God had promised to preserve their lives, but they still dropped anchors, listened to warnings, ate food to regain their strength, and prepared for what was coming.
Faith does not require us to pretend there is no problem. When we become worried, we can sometimes move toward one of two extremes. We may panic and try to control everything ourselves, or we may become overwhelmed and do nothing. Paul demonstrates a better response. We can pray about what we fear, speak truth when necessary, do what we are able to do, and trust God with what remains outside our control.
Sometimes the next faithful step is very practical. It may mean making a phone call, asking someone for help, seeing a doctor, talking with your employer, apologizing to someone, meeting with a counselor, reviewing your finances, or simply admitting that you have a problem you cannot solve alone. We do not have to know how the whole storm will end before taking the next wise step.
Take Care of What God Has Put in Front of You
One of my favorite details in Acts 27 happens shortly before the shipwreck. Everyone has been living under tremendous stress, and Paul tells them to eat. That may not sound particularly spiritual, but it was exactly what they needed. They had become so consumed by the crisis that they had neglected something basic. Paul told them they needed food to survive. Then he took bread, gave thanks to God in front of everyone, broke it, and began to eat. Acts 27:36 says, “They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves.”
Sometimes when life feels overwhelming, we need to remember the ordinary responsibilities God has given us. We need to eat, rest, pray, read Scripture, go to work, care for our families, worship with other believers, and continue doing the things God has placed in front of us. Taking care of ourselves physically and spiritually is not a lack of faith. Sometimes it is part of faithfully enduring the storm. We may not be able to control what is happening around us, but we can still be faithful with what God has given us to do today.
Become a Source of Hope in the Storm
Something remarkable happens to Paul’s influence during Acts 27. He begins the voyage as a prisoner whose advice is ignored. As the crisis becomes more serious, people begin listening to him. Paul is praying, speaking truth, encouraging frightened people, reminding them of God’s promise, and even giving thanks for food while the ship is still in danger. His circumstances have not improved, but his faithfulness in those circumstances gives him an opportunity to influence the people around him.
Sometimes God allows us to go through difficult circumstances where our faith can be seen by people who might not otherwise listen to us. They watch how we respond when the diagnosis comes, work becomes difficult, money is tight, plans fall apart, or someone treats us unfairly. This does not mean Christians should pretend everything is wonderful. Paul certainly did not pretend the storm was harmless. Biblical hope looks honestly at reality while continuing to trust God. In difficult seasons we can become people who bring hope rather than adding more fear. We can listen, pray, serve, speak truth, and point people toward the God we trust.
Sometimes God Doesn’t Save the Ship
Eventually the people aboard the ship saw land and tried to run the vessel aground. Instead, the bow became stuck while the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding surf. The ship was lost, but God’s promise was not. Acts 27:43–44 says that those who could swim were ordered to jump overboard and reach land first. Everyone else followed on planks or other pieces of the ship, and Luke concludes by saying that everyone reached land safely.
There is something worth remembering in that picture. The ship breaking apart looked like one more disaster, yet pieces of the broken ship became the means by which some of the people reached shore. Sometimes God doesn’t save the ship. Sometimes He gets us safely to shore on a piece of what just broke apart. That does not mean every loss is good or that every painful circumstance will eventually make sense to us. It means our confidence is ultimately not in the ship. Our confidence is in God.
God May Have a Bigger Plan Than Surviving the Storm
The story continues in Acts 28 when the survivors discover that they have landed on Malta. Even there Paul’s difficulties are not finished. While gathering brushwood, a viper fastens onto his hand. The islanders initially assume that he must be a terrible criminal who escaped the sea only to face judgment from the snake, but Paul survives. Later he is welcomed into the home of Publius, the chief official of the island. When Publius’s father becomes sick, Paul prays for him and God heals him. Other sick people on the island then come and are healed as well.
The storm, the shipwreck, and the unexpected stop on Malta did not prevent God’s plan. God continued working through all of it, and Paul eventually reached Rome. During the storm God had told Paul, “You must stand trial before Caesar” – Acts 27:24 (NIV). The ship could break apart without God’s purpose breaking apart. Paul did not know every detail of how he would get there, but he knew enough about God’s promise to keep moving forward.
Whatever storm we are facing today, we may not know exactly how it will end. The Bible does not give us permission to promise that every problem will disappear, every relationship will be restored, every illness will be healed in this life, or everything will turn out exactly the way we want. What we can know is that God remains faithful. For those who belong to Jesus Christ, the storm does not have the final word. God does.
When the Storm Is Not Your Fault
Maybe you are living with the consequences of a decision you never made. Maybe you warned someone and they did not listen. Maybe circumstances changed suddenly and you are wondering what God is doing. Maybe something you depended upon is breaking apart. Paul’s experience reminds us that we do not have to control the storm in order to remain faithful in it. We can pray about our fears, listen to God’s Word, speak truth with grace, take care of what God has put in front of us, help the people around us, do what we are able to do, and trust God with what we cannot do.
Most importantly, our hope is not simply that God will make our present circumstances easier. Our hope is ultimately found in Jesus Christ. Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead, offering forgiveness and eternal life to those who trust in Him. Paul could face an uncertain future because his life belonged to Christ. We can have that same assurance. Even when we cannot see the shore and do not understand what God is doing, we can continue to trust the One who does.
Questions for Personal Application
Paul’s experience in Acts 27–28 gives us an opportunity to think about how we respond when circumstances are beyond our control. Consider these questions as you think about the storms you may be facing:
- What situation in your life right now feels like a storm you did not choose?
- Are you blaming yourself for something that was never within your control?
- What fear about the future do you need to specifically bring to God in prayer?
- What is one wise and faithful step you can take even though you cannot solve the entire problem?
- Are you allowing someone else’s poor decision to make you bitter, or are you looking for a way to respond faithfully?
- Who around you might need encouragement and hope because of the way you are handling this difficult season?
- Is there something you are desperately trying to save that God may be asking you to release?
- Can you trust God if getting safely to shore looks different from what you expected?
You may not be able to control the storm, but you can choose how you respond to it. Ask God for wisdom to know what you should do, courage to do what is right, and faith to trust Him with everything you cannot control.
Listen to the Original Messages
This article is based on two messages I originally preached in July 2023 from Acts 27–28 about Paul’s journey through the storm, the shipwreck, and what God did through it. You can listen to the original messages below.