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How to avoid a shipwreck
'YOU WISELY AND TENDERLY LEAD ME, AND THEN YOU BLESS ME' PSALM 73:24
Your life is like a voyage. If you want to avoid a shipwreck read Acts 27:12 (NIV) and notice the following things:
1) They thought they knew best. 'Since the harbour was unsuitable...the majority decided that we should sail on.' God doesn't guide us by the majority vote, He guides us by His Spirit.
2) They were impatient to get to where they were going. There's not a single verse in the Bible that tells us to hurry up or we'll miss God! In the wilderness Israel learned that when the cloud moves, you move; when the cloud stops, stay where you are and wait on God.
3) They failed to listen to God's Word. 'But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot' (Acts 27:11 NIV). Be careful, if you look hard enough you'll find someone who just agrees with what you want to do and that can get you into trouble.
4) They looked to the circumstances instead of God to guide them. 'When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had obtained what they wanted; so they...sailed. Before very long...The ship was caught by the storm' (Acts 27:13-15 NIV).
The idea that if the circumstances work out right it must be God's plan isn't biblical, in fact for many people in the Bible the proof was the total opposite. Sometimes God leads you through the problem, not around it. He'll never lead you anywhere that doesn't require His provision and protection. So if you want to avoid shipwreck ask God to show you the right way, which is His way!
written by Bob Gass
