Paul And Malta
Our present position is EXACTLY where God intends us to be.
Paul was unjustly a prisoner. As such, he was being transported across the ocean to have an audience with the emperor of Rome. That’s actually quite amazing…the Bible intersecting our dull 7th grade history textbook.
To ancient Rome it was, BUT, due to the proud arrogance of a know-it-all-know-nothing Roman sea captain, he, along with 260 or so other prisoners were battered night and day for 14 days across the Mediterranean in a very tiny ship in a massively huge body of water. It was so bad they could hardly tell if it was night or day!
It really seemed that life was over. But God wasn’t nearly finished with the extraordinary blessing He had for Paul..and the extraordinary usefulness that He had thoroughly mapped out.
A profound hidden wonder in the book of Acts is encapsulated in one short sentence that Paul spoke as he related his encounter with an angel on the not-so-hot boat: “We must run aground on a certain island.” – Acts 27:26
God and Storms
Paul had no idea which island it was or what God had intended that they come ashore on. There was no hint in circumstances that this was about to happen. But God said it was going to happen and it says something else extremely significant.
God was claiming headship over this awful 14-day storm. It was the most random, most vicious, most non-relenting difficulty of Paul’s life. It wouldn’t stop. Yet Paul wrote, “What can separate us from the love of Christ…” and he was experiencing it in real-time, but he didn’t know it yet. But then God said He was in control of the storm, AND He said He had a specific goal–to drive the little boat, not only to an island but to a one-mile stretch of that island and in the process to get the boat wrecked. He wanted his little band there for a while.
Did any of this make any sense at all to Paul? No. But the God who makes 25-foot thick, 300-foot tall Giant sequoias and mile-deep 60-foot sea-diving beasts from a code too small to see does what we completely don’t expect….things so out-of-the-box that they never enter our minds.
And so it was with Paul.
The little ship broke up within swimming distance of shore and one every last one of the 276 storm-beaten rogues was safely drug up the beach. A really, really wonderful fire was stoked by a fellow who deeply cared about the whole rebel-rousing bunch of them. And then the Power began to flow.
God knew exactly how to reach this little town of His people in the middle of nowhere and He shook the foundations of everyone’s doubt, rebelliousness, sensuality and lostness and brought Himself to that place in an exceedingly good–and power manifesting–way. Said In our 21st century vernacular, He blew them all away.
The next thing you know is what Paul wrote, “They treated us with extraordinary kindness…”
You and I can’t grasp what that meant to Paul. He’d been a prisoner in a little ugly cell…and then on a tiny boat that was ripped by a horrific storm. The next thing that happens is he’s invited to an island paradise feast with laughter, love and a whole lot of God. All all this was being shared by lousy, mean Roman soldiers who just talked about killing all of them in cold blood, crazy natives and dirt-bag prisoners.
GOD moved in a way so powerful, so stunning, and so spectacular that not one of those beloved brothers and sisters ever forgot those incredible days the rest of their lives. One day you’ll get to hear the story from their own mouths; how fun that will be!
I can see Paul on the beach with his feet ankle deep in the water watching the sunrise while seeing the gulls and the sandpipers, the pelicans and the sand crabs. I can imagine him raising his hands as it’s all overwhelming him with his eyes full of tears, trying to get out the words, “My Lord and my God…This is too good…too beautiful. I can barely believe this is even happening…”
God does the ridiculously perfect, extraordinary, and COMPLETELY unexpected.” And Paul had no idea– absolutely no idea– that billions upon billions upon billions of his brothers and sisters in Christ in the thousands of years to come would hear about his story and find boatloads of fantastic, sure-to-bring-God’s-power hope.
Back To You
You are EXACTLY where you need to be.
Joseph was in prison in far less than the best circumstances, but he was scoring massively in the hidden realm. Then the appointed time came, And it was from that exact very crummy place that the way-making power of God shook present realities to the core. He moved a couple of tiny effective miracles into place… and the unthinkable began. The next thing you know is Joseph is married and has kids and has power over an entire country.
Could Joseph have ever imagined what was around the next corner? No. God does the completely unexpected.
Faith is nothing special…nothing beautiful or noteworthy…except to the God of the universe. It’s hanging on…sometimes hoping when you can’t even hope. it’s closing to believe–despite everything seen–that the God of the orchid, the rose, the daisy– and all matter and energy in the universe–is completely unconquerable. It’s standing on the certainty that God is always aware, always has a plan for us, and is ALWAYS moving in hidden ways behind the scenes with profound intent and profound wisdom.
This always yields God creating new wonderful things that God does in His perfect faithfulness.
