I won't live by my circumstances!

Today as I was reading about the apostle Paul I realized the great trials that this man went thru.  So here he is in the book of Acts chapter 27 a prisoner.  The king had just commanded for Paul to be sent to Rome to be judged by Caesar.  He sets sail with 276 other prisoners to be judged in Rome.  I can’t even imagine how terrifying that situation might have been.  However, the Bible doesn’t mention that he was fearful.  I can’t imagine why he didn’t feel fear because shortly after he set sail everything seemed to be going against their favor.  Just look what happened next:

1^st they had lost sailing time since the winds weren’t in their favor and impeded them from docking in the port that they were heading to

2^nd they encountered hurricane force winds

3^rd they lost cargo and verse 20 states they had lost all hope of being saved (they were sure that they were going to die)

4^th the boat is destroyed to pieces but make it to shore

5^th the soldiers plan to kill everyone (back in those days if the soldiers lost a prisoner they would have to account for the prisoner with their own lives) but the centurion pleas for their lives

6^th Paul while gathering some brushwood is bitten in his hand by a viper

Didn’t seem like favorable circumstances.  If Paul lived today he would probably think like many of us, he would probably say “God has abandoned me”.  Amazingly enough he never allowed his current circumstances to bring him to question God.  He went through life endangerment but his circumstances didn’t tear down his faith.  Can you imagine this?  He was bitten by a snake and simply shook it off and continued to gather brushwood.  All those around him were just waiting to see if he would pass out, die or any signs of swelling in his hand, and there wasn’t any!!!  It was almost like it didn’t even happen.  But that was his faith.  He knew that if God had spared him from dying in the ship it was because he still had a duty to fulfill and nothing or anything that could possibly happen to him would impede him from fulfilling his duty. 

The Bible continues to say that all the sick people of that island came to him and he healed them.  Here he is a prisoner who was shipwrecked didn’t have the right to his own freedom but he was setting others free from their illnesses.  ALL WERE HEALED! 

Don’t allow your circumstances to dictate your future.  You have the ability thru your faith to overcome any difficult situation no matter how life threatening it is.  God’s plan for you is great than your circumstances.  Yes, they might be painful to endure but the plan that God has for you will come to pass regardless of all that might rise up against you. 

Paul kept his faith in God when everything was going wrong and shortly after he healed many and did go to Rome and for two years was preaching the word of God to those who had never had the opportunity to know the truth.  Keep the faith!