Encouragement

    The apostle Paul was a tentmaker by trade and not a sailor, but in Acts 27, where we read of his voyage as a prisoner by sea toward the Italian coast, Paul had a "gut feeling" or a perception by the Spirit that to journey farther from Fair Haven would be disastrous. The actual captain of the ship and the majority of the crew and soldiers on board thought otherwise, because Fair Haven was not the ideal harbor for the winter season. Paul turned out to be right.
   Sometimes the experts in a certain field, and the professionals and prognosticators with the most experience are the last ones to see the truth of a situation. Sometimes to those with much less experience and specialized credentials it can be given to know or sense the dire consequences associated with a particular course of action. All too often these less "qualified" ones are ignored and at great cost. But notice that Paul the prisoner was not embittered by being ignored, or by being held on false charges, but instead he was faithful to help pick up the pieces and be an encourager in the resulting chaos.  And over the course of this voyage it is interesting to see how his word gains credibility.  May God help us to accept and embrace our fair havens, though they be far less than ideal.