November 29
Bible Reading: Acts 27:39-44
Acts 27:44, “And so it was that all were brought safely to land.”
What is true success? Success is often defined by the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. From a purely human perspective, the voyage described in Acts 27 could be considered an utter failure. The goal was to bring the ship and its cargo safely to its destination. However, due to a violent storm, the cargo was jettisoned, and the ship itself was wrecked.
But how should we measure success? What seemed like a victory for the devil in Jesus’ death on the cross was, in reality, his ultimate defeat, as Jesus triumphed through the resurrection. God has a remarkable way of flipping the script, turning what seems like a bad ending into something good (Romans 8:28). Any understanding of success that fails to include God’s involvement is flawed and short-sighted. By one measure, the voyage was a failure, but by another, it was a success.
Though the ship was doomed to crash, Paul’s presence aboard made all the difference. Ultimately, it was God who preserved the lives of everyone on board, but He worked through Paul to accomplish this. Paul trusted God amid the storm. He prayed for the safety of his shipmates, and God answered his prayers (Acts 27:24).
Paul remained faithful to the task God had given him. Even amidst the chaos, he continued to trust in Jesus, to love Jesus, and to serve Jesus. God measures success in terms of faithfulness (1 Corinthians 4:2). It is by this standard that Paul would ultimately consider his life successful (2 Timothy 4:7).
Paul’s faithfulness benefited others. There’s a saying that goes, “When in trouble and in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout.” While some aboard the ship panicked, Paul remained calm and resolute. He continued to trust Jesus and showed genuine care for those around him. Everyone on that ship was better off because Paul was on board. Although he wasn’t a sailor and lacked navigational experience, Paul was in direct communication with the One who rules over the seas.
Life is both precious and unpredictable. We are here on earth for a brief time, and we are called to “make the best use of the time” (Ephesians 5:16). True success in life, then, equates to being faithful, in one’s walk with Jesus, to do that which He has given to do. When we are faithful, others will inevitably benefit.
We do not know what happened to Paul’s fellow shipmates after the shipwreck. However, it’s reasonable to assume that some—if not many—were encouraged by Paul’s example to turn to Jesus for salvation. No matter our circumstances, we’ve opportunity to bear witness to Jesus. In fact, it’s often amid life’s storms that our witness to Him becomes even more powerful.
“Circumstances may appear to wreck our lives and God’s plans, but God is not helpless among the ruins…He comes in and takes the calamity and uses it victoriously, working out his wonderful plan of love.” –Eric Liddell
SO SEND I YOU
So send I you to labour unrewarded
To serve unpaid, unloved, unsought, unknown
To bear rebuke, ot suffer scorn and scoffing
So send I you to toil for Me alone
So send I you to bind the bruised and broken
Over wandering souls to work, to weep, to wake
To bear the burdens of a world a-weary
So send I you to suffer for My sake
So send I you to loneliness and longing
With hart a-hungering for the loved and known
Forsaking kin and kindred, friend and dear one
So send I you to know My love alone
So send I you to leave your life’s ambition
To die to dear desire, self-will resign
To labour long, and love where men revile you
So send I you to lose you life in Mine
So send I you to hearts made hard by hatred
To eyes made blind because they will not see
To spend, though it be blood to spend and spare not
So send I you to taste of Calvary
“As the Father hath sent me, so send I you”
LookingtoJesus 