Just Being Real

Acts 27:10-26

The terrible storm raged for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone. (Acts 27:20)

PAUL AND OTHER PRISONERS were being shipped to Rome, and the prophetic impulse in Paul sensed that trouble was ahead. Even so, the ship’s captain and crew continued on with the voyage. When a violent storm threatened the ship, the crew threw cargo and gear overboard. Still, the ship was tossed on the waves for days, and “all hope was gone.” Well, not all hope. At least one passenger spoke God’s will into the situation and informed everyone else of what they could not see with their natural eyes. An angel had promised Paul that even though they would, in fact, be shipwrecked, he and his fellow passengers would survive. After all, Paul had been given a mission to preach the gospel to the empire’s highest officials. That mission was not going to end at the bottom of the sea.

So Paul spoke words of truth and hope: “I believe God. It will be just as he said” (verse 25). No one would have faulted him if he had said, “I think everything will be okay, but it’s all in God’s hands.” Or if he had said, “I’m having a really hard time with this; I’m carrying an important message, but bad things happen to good people. Oh well, God has ways of accomplishing his purposes, with me or without me.” Paul had seen Christians, even apostles, die. He could have become discouraged. He made a choice to listen to God and then speak the language of hope.

We’re well familiar with the tendency to express our disappointments and frustrations with the claim of “just being real.” But is our “real” actually real? What if our perspective doesn’t align with God’s? Whose reality is real—his or ours? It’s one thing to be honest about our feelings; it’s another to be true. God understands our ups and downs, but we need to understand the culture of his Kingdom. It always skews toward hope, blessing, and glory. May our hearts, minds, and words align fully with his.

{Lord, you do not judge disappointment harshly, but you do call me into truth. If I could see with your eyes, I would never be discouraged. Give me the gift of anticipation for all the goodness you have planned. Amen.