Shipwreck and All Alive!

“But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken in pieces by the pounding of the surf…He (the centurion) ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. The rest were to get there on planks or on pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land in safety.” –Acts 27:41, 43b-44 (NIV. Read Acts 27:27-44).

In the midst of the terrible storm at sea, the prisoner Paul was like the commander of the ship. He urged the crew, passengers and prisoners to eat after they had been without food for fourteen days during the storm. “Altogether there were 276 of us on board” (v. 37). It was good that Paul got them to eat. All would need strengthening for the ordeal ahead. The sailors tried to abandon ship in the lifeboat, but they were prevented from escaping. Finally, the ship went aground and was dashed to pieces. All 276 aboard, as Paul had predicted, reached the safety of the island, some by swimming through choppy waters and others by grabbing a piece of wood from the ship and floating ashore.

Talk about high drama, this account in Acts is full of it. The theme is man against the elements. And the hero is a prisoner named Paul who took charge as though he himself were the commander of the ship. It was he who had the word from God, he who saw to practical matters like eating after a fast of fourteen days (knowing that hungry men have no strength to work), he who told the frightened people that their lives would be spared. Next to him was Julius the centurion, charged with getting Paul and other prisoners safely to Rome. He, too, stands out as one used of God to preserve the lives of all the prisoners and assist in getting them to shore. When the guards wanted to shoot the prisoners, Julius intervened and would not let them do so. We can see why the soldiers assigned to guard the prisoners wanted to kill them. By Roman law, if they escaped, the soldiers themselves would have to stand trial for the charges against the prisoners. It would be easier to kill them. But the word of the angel to Paul was coming true: “not one of you will be lost. Only the ship will be destroyed” (Acts 27:22).

It may not be a shipwreck we survive in life. Most of us can recall narrow escapes. Maybe ours was from a wreck, some other accident, severe, life-threatening illness, for some it may be war, for others, disasters. Of one thing we can be assured: If we are a survivor, we were saved for a purpose. “Shipwreck and alive” could be a motto of what God has done to rescue us from danger and save us for His purpose and intention in life. It is worth serious thought and recommitment of life to the Lord.

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Saturday, May 15, 2010