HOW CAN I BE CONFIDENT IN A CRISIS?
Illustration: When I was young my Dad always told me about his childhood and how they lived in a house that is near the Sea. The thing that he most feared was the typhoon since their house is made of wood, it will be beaten down, almost carried by the wind, they would tie it down and stay inside but he is most afraid of the howling wind, crash of the waves. He even made a song about it, and when he grew-up he built a better house far away from the shore line, where there are no waves, built of stone so that it will not be carried away. He made me a home much safer, securer, than his home before. Now I can relax, storms may come and go but I know with the house that he built we are safe.
The bible teaches us that there are 3 kinds of storms in our lives. The storms that we have caused (Samson). The storms that God has caused (Jesus in the lake of Gallilee). Storms that others have caused us (Paul and Silas thrown in Prison). The last one is the hardest to take when your innocent.
Today lets talk about the storm in Pauls life and it may serve to help us today. On how we can be confident and strong in a crisis situation. In Acts 27:9-12.
Paul was on his way as a prisoner to Rome, on board a ship when God told Paul to tell the crew not to leave the harbor because there was going to have a big storm. But the sailors ignored Paul, partly because they were impatient.. (Acts 27:9-12) --- Impatience alwayg gets us into trouble doesn’t it.
a. Single and not getting younger who wants to have a husband ASAP—kahit sino na lang
b. Get new Jobs
c. Yumaman
d. They didn’t check it out with God first and sailed right into a storm—same then, funny many things haven’t changed yet.
Paul said to the sailors (v.10) Men I can see that our voyage will be disastrous to our cargo and to our own lives”
I. The 3 Common reasons why people get themselves in a mess
1. Wrong Counsellors—The Centurion instead of listening to Paul, a man of God. Listened to the Pilot and the owner of the ship.
a. Who will I listen to, a man of God or the experts? My friends? My Neighbor?
c. Some people will go around and look for people who will agree with them and then do what they want.
Illustration: A story… It was autumn, and the Indians on the remote reservation asked their new Chief if the winter was going to be cold or mild. Since he was an Indian Chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets. When he looked at the sky, he couldn’t tell what the weather was going to be. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he replied to his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect firewood to be prepared. Also, being a practical leader, after several days he got an idea. He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked, "Is the coming winter going to be cold?" "It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold indeed," the meteorologist at the weather service responded. So the Chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more wood in order to be prepared. A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. "Is it going to be a very cold winter?" "Yes," the man at National Weather Service again replied, "it’s definitely going to be a very cold winter." The Chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of wood they could find. Two weeks later, he called the National Weather Service again. "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?" "Absolutely," the man replied. "It’s going to be one of the coldest winters ever." "How can you be so sure?" the Chief asked. The weatherman replied, "The Indians are collecting wood like crazy."
2. Wrong Guidance from a Vote. (v12) “Since the harbor they were in was unsuitable in winter, the majority decided to move on…” we get ourselves into a mess because we always take a vote.
a. Fact is the Majority is always wrong
b. Do u remember what happened when Moses started leading the peopke of Israel? Majority of them wanted to go back to Egypt. They were wrong.
Illustration: Dieters went Camping to the deapest of Jungle. They were captured by Cannibals and so they were given 2 choices. Pakakainin hangang tumaba or Death. They took a vote and it seems that ayaw nilang tumaba sabi nila Death na lang. Then the chief said sige, death, Patabain hangang mamatay.
3. Wrong Guidance from Circumstances. (v13) “When a gentle south wind started to blow, they thought they have obtained what they wanted, and they sailed.” Everything seems to be fine, but its crazy to ignore what God is saying just because you feel that everything is going fine.”
1. People says, This decision must be ok because I feel good about it. A common song “How could it be wrong when it feels so right.”
Illustration: BF ni Darna, Sotto ba yun? Yung namatay dahil nahulog sa building…addict kasi, sabi niya siguro paano magiging masama kung masarap….haaaay saraaap.
2. When God says wait, we wait. When he says No, then that means NO. Its for our own good.
II. When we are in a crisis we typically do the same things as the Sailors did. They 3 things.
1. Don’t Drift (v.15, v17) “The ship was caught by the storm and we let the ship be driven along..”
When we are in storms many I of us give up at patatangay na lang sa agos, kung saan dalhin ng problema. Whats the use, why fight ill just go with the flow.
2. Don’t Discard (vv18-19, 43-44) “We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard.” -- cargo, then tackle, then grains, themselves.”
a. The point in this is that when we get into troubled waters we are tempted to throw out the things that are important to us. Just because we want to get rid of the pressure.
a. we get impulsive—kahit ano na lang…
b. We give up on our dreams
c. We run out on relationships
d. We throw away valued that we learned as children
3. Don’t Despair. V.20 When they have seen no stars, no sun for many days and the storm kept raging, they gave up all hope.”—That’s the last thing that we throw up when we got ourselves a problem and when we throw out hope weve had it.
n They forgot that God is in Control, that God is Hope in our hopeless situation.
III. Pauls Reaction – It was totally different from the sailors reaction. 180 degrees turn around. The sailors were discouraged, depressed and hipeless. Paul was confident, courageous. The Sailors reaction was natural but they don’t have to be our reaction.
What should we do then, when we are battered and shattered by problems? Look at what the Sailors finally did, vv. 29 “Fearing that ther would be dashed into the rocks, they dropped their anchors and prayed for daylight.”
The sailors had to anchor deep! They had to get stability! Thay have got to be tied on something so they will not be carried away. Often when people are carried by their problems, they make themelves more unstable. They want to change everything. When a person loses someone he loves dies or something. He quits his job, sells his house, moves to a new place. That’s exactly don’t need more change—they have got to get some stability.
Illustration: A storm, they were living on a lifeboat, don’t tie it to things, trees on land, etc. Drop your anchors deep into the sea and it will not be blown away.
Paul was confident in a crisis because his soul was anchored deep into 3 truths. We can use this sisters and brothers even when winds of crisis blow, we should tie our boats, our lives into this truths.
1. GODS PRESENCE. (Acts 27:23) .. “Last nite an angel of the God whose I am and whome I serve stood beside me.”
Illustration: The disciples in a storm, they were so afraid, feared for their lives, they forgot that Jesus was in the boat with them. That the God of the Seas and everything was with them. No power on earth can harm them because Jesus was with them.
Quote: I would rather walk with God in the dark than go it alone in the light.
Story: Jewell, namamasyal kami dito sa Hong Kong, a different place a different territory. I held her hand and asked aren’t you afraid to get lost? Dad, as long as your with me holding my hand I will not be afraid. She knows as long as I am with her I will never let anything harm her. Kung ako ganoon, si God pa kaya?
He’s presence in lifes storms should be an anchor for our souls.
2. GOD PURPOSE(VS 27:24) “Do not be afraid Paul, you are going to stand on trial before Ceasar…” In essence the Angel is saying, the Lord has a plan Paul. Your going to go to Rome and speak for me. More than the storm God has a plan for Pauls life. The storm is just a temporary setback.
Illus: All church has its problems, alex, joy, jillian—my Dad said don’t loose focus, that’s not the real issue. And I believe him, their problems are just set backs to what the Lord has planned for our church.
Whats happening to you is not the real, issue, God has something great and good planned for you, he has a purpose for you. If you choose to reject that purpose he will allow you to, but there is no outside force, other people or circumstances change Gods purpose for you.
Illustration: Running towards the goal…nothing can make you give up, ikaw lang. Like the athlete in the Olympics, he was first pero napatid siya, his father from the stands run up to him. His father said anak do you want to finish, we came here to finish….we purposed to finish and so they did hand in hand.
As long as you say Lord I want to do your will
3. God’s Promise (V.25) “Paul says, keep up your courage men, for I have Faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.” – because God promised, then I trust!
a. Let me say this, many are going to a crisis, some may say baka hindi na ako makabangon pagkatapos nito, hirap na hirap na ako, im going under for the last time. You may loose your carfgo, you may loose the ship, you may even get to get wet—but youre going to make it. Why? Because God promised it. And if he promised it, we believe it.
Illustration: Kids, if I break 3 eggs in your head ill give you 10 dollars. Breaks only 2 then says I will never break the third egg that cost me 10 bucks.
Illusr: In the end of the story (acts 27:29) They ancored themselves and prayed for daylight. What then happened, morning came and they all were saved 276 people not one perished. All were safe!--- Have God ever lied to you, ever forgot his promise? Never…
“The 1989 Armenian earthquake needed only four minutes to flatten the nation and kill thirty thousand people. Moments after that deadly tremor ceased, a father raced to an elementary school to save his son. When he arrived, he saw that the building had been leveled. Looking at the mass of stones and rubble, he remembered a promise he had made to his child: “No matter what happens, I’ll always be there for you.” Driven by his own promise, he found the area closest to his son’s room and began to pull back the rocks. Other parents arrived and began sobbing for their children. “It’s too late,” they told the man. “You know they are dead. You can’t help.” Even a police officer encouraged him to give up. But the father refused. For eight hours, then sixteen, then thirty-two, thirty-six hours he dug. His hands were raw and his energy gone, but he refused to quit. Finally, after thirty-eight wrenching hours, he pulled back a boulder and heard his son’s voice. He called his boy’s name, “Arman! Arman!” And a voice answered him, “Dad, it’s me!” Then the boy added these priceless words, “I told the other kids not to worry. I told them if you were alive, you’d save me, and when you saved me, they’d be saved, too. Because you promised, ‘No matter what, I’ll always be there for you.’””
