November 29, 2012 - Acts 27:35

            “After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all.  Then he broke it and began to eat.”  Acts 27:35.

            After fourteen days of being caught in a hurricane, the ship on which Paul was a captive passenger was about to shipwreck on the island of Malta.  The crew and passengers hadn’t eaten during the whole time in the storm, and Paul exhorted everyone to take nourishment, they would need the strength provided by the food, before the ship wrecked.  As everyone on board was coming together to eat, Paul lifted the bread toward heaven and thanked God for His provision.  The scene looked very much like a communion service or sharing the Lord’s Supper, and it was very similar to what Jesus had done with his disciples during his last meal with them before his crucifixion.  For Paul, this was quite a remembrance of his Lord’s last meal, as well as a real celebration of their survival.

            I really enjoy coming together with others to share the Lord’s Supper.  I have some wonderful memories of different, various times of celebration, yet there is one that stands out.  Many years ago, a large group of us were traveling together by bus home from a conference, and our bus broke down.  We were stuck in the middle of nowhere and had very little money and no food.  We knew our replacement bus was on its way but didn’t know when it would arrive.  We decided to pool all of our resources together for one last meal, knowing that this would be all we would eat for another day or so.  As we were giving thanks, eating and celebrating together, a group of people who had been to the same conference heard of our plight and gathered their resources to share with us.  It turned out to be plenty for us to make the trip home comfortably.  We celebrated, gave thanks to God for His provision, and broke bread together in the middle of our stormy conditions.

            Questions to consider: What does taking communion mean to you?  Do you have any memorable communion experiences?  Have you ever experienced the breaking of bread in the middle of a storm in your life?  What was that like for you?

            Prayer: Father, thank You for the opportunity to remember the Lord’s sacrifice for us in the communion experience.  Each time I experience this, I remember and am deeply grateful for what You did for us.  Amen.

November 21, 2012 - "In and of myself...."

            During this Thanksgiving, what are you thankful for?  It is my hope that, whatever it is, you have a time of giving thanks with those whom you love.  Happy Thanksgiving to you!

            “In and of myself, I am more sinful than I ever dared to believe,

                 but in Christ, I am more loved than I ever dared to hope.”  Tim Keller

            In reflecting on the Thanksgiving season, it is always helpful for me to remember from where I came before I entered into a relationship with Jesus as my Lord.  The above quote expresses for me the clear message of the depth of my own sin; the depth of the sin within each of us.  Only when we understand this truth about ourselves will we begin to fathom the depth of the Father’s great love for each one of us and the lengths He went to demonstrate it.  I don’t mean to belabor this point, yet it is important for us to remember from where we came and to realize that our sin is much deeper and darker than we could ever imagine.

            But my sin is not who I am; it is only what I have done.  Who I am is totally wrapped up in the fact that God loves me more than I could possibly imagine and has adopted me into His family.  No matter how deep and dark is my sin, the Father’s love for me in Jesus Christ goes so much deeper!  When Jesus came in the flesh, God moved into our world.  Jesus died for all sin for all time and for all people when He shed His blood on that horrible, yet wonderful, cross.  He took our sin and buried it in the grave, and God brought Him back to life, leaving sin and death in the grave.  This is what I am so thankful and grateful for this Thanksgiving!

            We are now called God’s sons and daughters!  This is who God intends for us to be!  He has given us the incredible offer to be His and to be part of His family!  And He says to each one of us, “You are my son; you are my daughter, and I am well pleased with you and I love you more than you could ever imagine.”  In this Thanksgiving season, take some time to reflect on the Father’s deep, abiding love for you, and give Him thanks.

            Questions to consider: Have you ever embraced God’s love for you in Jesus Christ?  Have you ever allowed Him to embrace you and tell you how much He loves you?  If so, how do you respond to Him?

            Prayer: Father, I am so grateful for the sacrifice of love You have shown me in Jesus.  Because I am deeply grateful, it is my heart to sacrifice my all and my life for Your sake.  Amen.

November 15, 2012 - Acts 27:33

            “Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat.  ‘For the last fourteen days,’ he said, ‘you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food – you haven’t eaten anything.’”  Acts 27:33.

            With their ship approaching land, Paul spoke to all on board, telling them that they had better eat something before the ship struck the shoreline.  They all had gone two solid weeks without eating, as they were continuously struggling to survive the storm.  It must have been quite suspenseful.  Paul urged everyone to eat something, knowing that they would need the nourishment to energize them for what was to happen next.  Even in the middle of an extreme crisis, Paul recognized the need for each of them to take care of themselves by making sure everyone ate something.  This care was necessary to strengthen them for this final push for survival.

            This scene of the survival of the shipwreck is instructive to me, in that I realize that there are times when I need to feed myself those things that energize me in preparation for the next situations I face.  I realize that, in being a workaholic, I could work until I drop, without concern for my well-being or for the relationships around me.  I could very easily go way overboard with work, so I need someone to hold me accountable to taking the time necessary to feed and to strengthen myself.  The lesson that I draw from this verse is that I need to take care of myself so that I can face whatever is next.  When I am caught in the storms in my life and I am about to shipwreck, will I take the nourishment necessary to strengthen myself?

            Questions to consider: Do you recognize those times when your tank is empty or near empty?  What are the warning signs in your life that show you that you are about to shipwreck? What are the things that strengthen you and nourish your soul?  Are you doing them?

            Prayer: Father, I know what it feels like to be very near a shipwreck in my life, and I don’t ever want to be there again.  Help me to recognize the signs of getting too close to it, and help me to know those things that feed me and fill me up.  And help me to actually do them!  Amen

November 8, 2012 - Acts 27:31-32

            “Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, ‘Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.’  So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it fall away.”  Acts 27:31-32.

            Can you imagine being caught in a storm for 14 straight days?  The ship Paul was aboard was caught in a hurricane-like storm for all of that time, and all on board had given up hope of ever coming out alive.  Paul received a word from God assuring him that all on board would survive, but that they all needed to stay with the ship.  Paul could not promise that anyone who left on their own would survive, and he warned the centurion in charge that the soldiers who were leaving the ship prematurely would not live, if they left.  It was vital that they all stayed together and followed the instructions the Lord had given them through Paul.  If they veered one way or another, they probably would not survive.  This was life or death, and they put their trust in Paul’s word and stuck together.

            We don’t often like to think about the need to stick together in order to survive.  It can come across as being very negative, yet, spiritually speaking, we are in a life or death struggle with an adversary that will do anything possible to take us out.  One main strategy is to isolate us and have us resist seeing the value of staying in community; of sticking together.  I, personally, have a natural tendency to be a loner, thinking that it is just easier for me to do things on my own and that working with others just slows me down.  It takes work for me to be in community with those around me and to learn how to rely on others.  It helps for me to remember that the storms of life are blowing violently and I need others and they need me.  It, also, helps for me to remember that it is not all about me.  We need to stick together in order to survive, just as Paul cautioned.

            Questions to consider: What is your first tendency – to look out for number one, or sacrifice for the good of your community?  What does your heart say about this?  What do your actions say?

            Prayer: Father, it is my heart to desire to sacrifice for the good of the whole community, yet I know my actions don’t line up to my desire.  Forgive me, cleanse me, and give me the strength to follow through with my actions.  Amen.