Trusting God in the Storms of Life

This passage raises important questions. "Can I trust God even when my life gets stormy? Can I trust Him even when things go unexpectedly wrong? Can I trust Him even when my situation is so discouraging that I see no way out? Will I trust Him even when things seem hopeless?"

That was the situation on the boat headed for Phoenix. The storm was raging. The wind was blowing. The rain was pouring down. And in spite of the best efforts of the crew, the boat was being battered and beaten by the storm. And the morale of the 276 people on board sank to an all time low. The Bible says in verse twenty that "When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved."

We all have moments where we feel just as battered and beaten and discouraged as the people on that ship. Perhaps there’s a storm brewing over your life right now. Maybe it’s a stormy marriage. Maybe you’re married to someone who argues and fights with you all the time. Or maybe YOU’RE the one who does the arguing and the fighting. Some days, you feeling like nothing will ever change! That your marriage is shipwrecked! That there’s no hope at all.

Or maybe there’s another type of storm brewing in your house. Maybe it’s a stormy relationship with a child. Who rebels against your authority. Who says, "It’s my life! You can’t tell me what to do anymore! I’ll do what I want!" And after many days and nights of dealing with this, you’re not sure if there anything more you can say. You feel like throwing your hands up in frustration. You feel like giving up.

Or maybe you feel battered and storm tossed. And you have no idea why you feel that way. You can’t put a finger on it. All you know is that you feel despair and discouragement and hopelessness. And things seem so bleak that there’s no way out.

The good news is that in the middle of our own personal storm, God gives us a word of hope! A message of encouragement! In verse 22, Paul said to the people, "Keep up your courage, because last night, I got a message from God! An angel appeared to me and said, "Do not be afraid. You must stand trial before Caesar, and God has graciously you the lives of all who sail with you. And I have faith it will happen exactly as he told me. God said it. I believe it. That settles it!"

We might never receive a message of hope from the mouth of an angel. But I have here in my hand a message of hope for all mankind. A message of hope for a storm tossed world. A message of hope for people who have lost hope. Isaiah 41:10 says "Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 43:2 says that "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. And when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you." God is not missing in action when our lives gets stormy. God is here! Encouraging us. Helping us. Orchestrating every situation and circumstance in accordance with the purpose of His will.

Paul had a word from God to help him through the storm. And so do we. I just finished reading Prisoners of Hope for the Peace Church Book Club. It’s about those two girls who were put into an Afghanistan prison for sharing the gospel of Christ. While they were there, they spent a lot of time reading the Psalms. And one of