Who's Got The Plan?

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHO'S GOT THE PLAN

Acts 27:27-32

27 On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. 28 They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet deep. 29 Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. 30 In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. 31 Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, "Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved." 32 So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it fall away.

NIV

The men of the ship, most likely the sailors or crew, tried to do everything they knew to save themselves from what they thought was an impending disaster. We cannot imagine spending 14 days pounded by a storm at sea. According to the following text, there were 276 souls onboard. Because they dropped four anchors from the stern, combined with the number of souls, we think the ship was rather large. However, our story comes from what Paul told the centurion. Human effort alone would have caused them great harm, for unless those men stayed with the ship, the rest onboard could not be saved. When the angel of the Lord informed Paul of God's plan of saving all the men on the ship, in fact, not a hair on their heads would be harmed, that meant all who were on board. That meant a unified belief in the plan told to Paul, who was nothing but a prisoner, yet the only spokesperson for God. How was it that the others listened, especially the centurion, to a prisoner? What did Paul know about sailing, or how to manage a ship on the high seas, and in a storm? Yet he seemed to be in charge of everyone's safety on the ship. However, he was the only one who had heard from God. Here is where we take our clue for this life in the community of faith. We might think that it is our efforts that keep a church afloat, or, for that matter, cause it to grow. Sure, we need to maintain the building where we meet, but that is not the church. We are the church, and our safety depends solely on God; therefore, we should all be onboard with God's plan. When we try to save ourselves by either dropping anchors or making an effort to get to a lifeboat of our own making, we stand in danger of causing ourselves great harm. The centurion ordered his soldiers to cut the ropes that held the lifeboat, and that is what we need to do. We should cut all ties to self-effort and place our complete trust in God's plan.  We might make our plans, but God orders our footsteps; therefore, let us keep step with the Lord as he calls out the cadence. Who's got the plan?