Overwhelmed, God's Peace, Kojak-Bang Bang!

Overwhelmed

This passage reflects the stages we go through when we are overwhelmed and looking for peace. For time sake we will skip over the really “meaty” first portion of this chapter and look at the end, with tangible results of what happens when come to our wits end and everything we know to do and LET GOD BE IN CONTROL!
All this happened because they were feeling pressed for time

We secured the skiff with Using cables to under gird the ship was a customary practice sometimes called “frapping.” It helped prevent the ship from breaking apart in a storm. This is called frapping…so guess this is the first mention of a frappachaino in the Bible.

1. They let out the ship’s anchor to slow their movement
2. When the storm was as relentless the next day, they began throwing the ship’s cargo overboard.
3. Followed by throwing any of the ship’s gear that wasn’t essential. Lightening the load would help the ship sit higher in the water and reduce the strain on it.
4. The ship would likely take on water from the rough seas.
5. The storm continued to pound the ship and the passengers for many days.

Acts 27:21- Should have listened to Paul! Shouldn’t have left Crete. YOU WOULD HAVE AVOIDED ALL THIS DAMAGE AND LOSS!!! Could have avoided trouble and trial!
They couldn’t see the stars or sun- thus not able to navigate. Gave up hope…the sailors and guards had not listened to Paul. He had been shipwrecked 3 times and spends a night and day in the sea. He had been down this road before. He knew what he was talking about.
• I believe God that it will be just as it was told me
“If they missed Malta, there would have been nothing for it but to hold on for 200 miles until they struck the Tunisian coast, and no one could have expected the ship to survive that long.” (Bruce)

GOD’S PEACE
Three things in common? Bread…No it is the resulting peace that came out of the chaos!
• Out of the chaos of fear- came peace in seeing Jesus just as they had 100’s of times breaking bread. Their hearts burned within them as Jesus taught on the road to Emmaus LOOK FOR GOD IN OUR EVERYDAY, DAILY TASKS AND LIFE!

• Out of the chaos of unrealistic expectations came a renewing and freshness with God. God gave Elijah the chance to draw near to Him and by drawing near to God find out His plans. God spoke to Elijah in a personal way, not a RUBBER STAMP experience like Moses
• Out of the chaos of being overwhelmed- comes peace knowing the essentials ad ridding ourselves of the stuff that hinders our experiencing peace. Most of the stuff that the sailors threw overboard was good but not necessary for their situation.
God let Paul know they would be safe, but didn’t let him know everything like the name of the island
Out of all this chaos came peace! Chaos helps us find God in our situations and then trusting Him. .
• Peace of God isn’t something we can just sit down and figure out
• God’s peace is not a denial of reality
• God’s peace is not an escape from reality
• God’s peace is not a stupor that dulls our senses
• God’s peace is not an elimination of responsibility for addressing hard issues and difficult circumstance
No, God’s peace is an undergirding rock solid foundation so that no matter the tears we cry or the sorrow we feel, deep down inside we know with an abiding assurance that God is with us, God is in control and the joy of the Lord is going to emerge far greater than any depth of agony we may be experiencing.
Foundational truth that Paul knew- God’s peace, though mysterious and impossible to comprehend rationally, is able to see anyone through the journey of life-on a routine day or in the midst of any trial.

• Most people believe that peace as being very fleeting not a constant
• Greek word for peace means to bind together something that has been broken or disjointed
• Greek word also means a prevailing sense of quietness and rest in a person’s heart and emotions-being unperturbed or ruffled
• Peace is synonymous with being tranquil, serene, untroubled and calm. It is the real state of the soul
Trouble can come on us quickly and catch us off guard. We may respond with panic, anxiety and fear. The person of peace will quickly feel a power rising up inside and regaining control at the helm of their life. We know:
• God is here
• He is still in charge
• Nothing is beyond His strength or understanding
• Don’t be afraid!
Tonight I am sharing with you out of personal experience and this time was filled with many times of chaos. We took hope in Phil 4. Familiar passage…but we saw that Paul LEARNED how to content with whatever he had or didn’t have. Roy and I began a very wild ride in 2008. We began to learn how to experience God’s peace. I asked the Lord to give me something, a visual, that would help me see how this works. Each time we have been overwhelmed, had unrealistic expectations and talked out the problems in frustration and fear, not faith, this scene from the movie Foul Play comes to mind. I will end with this visual but because half of y’all weren’t born when it was made.

Group is out to kill the Pope
Detective and friend commandeer a limo to get to the opera house
IMPORTANT-watch the couple in the back seat!
Kojak-TV show Detective based in New York City that is something they recognize and know
With that confidence-the rest of the ride is different. When we know God's peace the circumstances are still the same but our attitude toward them is different.