They were all encouraged

“And when he had said these things, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all; and when he had broken it he began to eat. Then they were all encouraged, and also took food themselves.” - Act 27v35-36

What do we as believers do when there is a crisis all around us? Why is it that we normally step back and let the world deal with it? We think they have all the resources and all the wisdom to deal with it and we have nothing. This wasn’t true in days of old. The Christians of old were normally the first on the scene shaking the salt and shining the light.

Paul set the example during this awful storm at sea. It became obvious that the ship was going down. Someone had to take a leadership role. Judging from what we know of his personality, I don’t think that was too hard for Paul. He seemed to just take charge of the situation. “Its been two weeks since you guys have had a meal. The ship is about to be wrecked. Have a meal and get ready, you are going to need your strength.” The Paul took bread, broke it, gave thanks, took a bite, and invited everyone to eat. The result? Everyone else was encouraged and ate as well.

Why do we hide in the shadows? Why are we afraid to step forward? We are as qualified as anyone else to take a leadership role in times of trouble. And guess what? At the end of the day we have so much more to offer than just a solution to the present crisis – we have an answer for eternity as well. Doesn’t it make sense that if we have the answer to the present crisis we might very well be able to help out with eternal issues?