FAIR HAVENS

By Dimitris Pelidis

 

Everyone faces one or more major storms in life. It’s an inescapable fact. Therefore, It's not a question of IF but rather a question of HOW we deal with them when they arise. Paul the apostle, was confronted with one such storm on his own odyssey (his Godyssey!) from Asia Minor to Rome for the testimony of Christ.

From the very outset everything was against Paul and his 275 fellow-travelers.  Winds were contrary, sailing slow and passage difficult. Instead of taking a direct course to Italy, they were driven by violent winds to Crete where they docked at a small, quiet port called Fair Havens.

Acts 27:1-8:
1 And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius, a centurion of Augustus' band. 
2 And entering into a ship of Adramyttium, we launched, meaning to sail by the coasts of Asia; one Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, being with us. 
3 And the next day we touched at Sidon. And Julius courteously entreated Paul, and gave him liberty to go unto his friends to refresh himself. 
4 And when we had launched from thence, we sailed under Cyprus, because the winds were contrary. 
5 And when we had sailed over the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra, a city of Lycia. 
6 And there the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing into Italy; and he put us therein. 
7 And when we had sailed slowly many days, and scarce were come over against Cnidus, the wind not suffering us, we sailed under Crete, over against Salmone; 
8 And, hardly passing it, came unto a place which is called The fair havens; nigh whereunto was the city of Lasea.

In life there are times when everything seems to be against us. We set out to reach our destiny only to be thrown off course by opposing forces. Yet there is a shelter from the raging storm, a refuge for the winter of the soul. Fair havens or good ports is not so much a place on earth but the secret place of rest under the shadow of the Almighty.  

Psalm 91:1-2, 4:
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Psalm 27:5:
For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.

Oh, the inexpressible joy and peace one finds in Jesus Christ the Lord. He is our refuge and fortress, our pavilion, tabernacle and rock, our Fair Havens.

Long before he reached Fair Havens of Crete, Paul had sailed into the fair havens of eternity and safely anchored in Christ Jesus. He heard the master’s voice calling:

Matthew 11:28-29:
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Jesus gives us rest for our souls. It is not always a smooth, trouble-free ride, but it is an inner calm in the midst of the worst storm. You might be facing an overwhelming crisis outside but still enjoy a deep-seated rest inside. Without the Lord, your circumstances might be idyllic and you can still be struggling with relentless turmoil inside. My friend, only Jesus can give you the rest you so need. Only he can hush the howling wind and calm your restless soul.

Dock or Sail away?

Presumption or self-will is disastrous. David had this to say about it.

Psalm 19:13:
Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.
Along the same lines Solomon penned this well-known verse of scripture.

Proverbs 3:5-7a:
5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. 
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes....

Paul sensed that God was leading him to stay docked at Fair Havens. He warned the centurion, captain and crew not to set sail. Sadly his words went unheeded. As the Scriptures say:

Acts 27:9-12a:
9 Now when much time was spent, and when sailing was now dangerous, because the fast was now already past, Paul admonished them, 
10 And said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives. 
11 Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul. 
12 And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is an haven of Crete….

How typically human! The captain and his crew dismissed the good advice of God’s messenger and readily entrusted mere men. True, they were seasoned sailors but they had no knowledge of what lay ahead of them.

No matter what “seas” we navigate in life, God's counsel is always absolutely accurate and trustworthy. Unfortunately Paul’s instruction was voted out by the majority. They despised Fair Havens in favor of a much bigger, more appealing port. They presumptuously sailed off toward the port of Phoenix. Of course, bigger is not always better. Human expertise and public opinion are no substitute for sound judgment and right decision. Only God's guidance is!

Euroclydon

As often happens in life, there was a calm before the mighty storm.

Acts 27:13-14:
13 And when the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, loosing thence, they sailed close by Crete. 
14 But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon.

Even the weather conspired to talk them out of the God's will! The favorable conditions deceived them into supposing they had made the right choice, and so they sailed away to the detriment of their souls. When our foolish minds lead us astray, we invariably put our lives in danger's path and get caught in a vicious Euroclydon. But Euroclydon was no ordinary storm. It was like no other storm they had ever encountered. Gale force winds seized the ship, tossing it violently to and fro. This storm was so ferocious that the Bible records they tied cables to strengthen the ship.

Acts 27:17-20:
17 Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven. 
18 And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship; 
19 And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.
20 And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.

They were in the storm of their life, hopelessly tempest-tossed in the dark abyss for days on end.

In the last couple of years we, the Greek people, have found ourselves exceedingly tempest-tossed in what could be called a Euroclydon of the Eurozone. Deceived by the promise of a better life we are now trapped in a vicious financial storm.  We have turned our backs on God and the Holy Scriptures. We have turned up our nose to the warnings of the holy apostles and prophets even our original father in the faith the apostle Paul whose epistles have our names on them and are written in our own native tongue. It is no wonder that we have been drifting aimlessly for years on-end without a ray of light from either the sun or the moon. Having come to our wits end, we have lost all hope of being rescued. Sadly we have lived in defiance of God for far too long and are now paying the high price of our rebellion.

But are we the only nation who has forsaken God and put their trust in the arm of flesh?  Is not the rest of the world in the same boat as we? Make no mistake about it. There's a Euroclydon coming your way too and no nation who defies God will be spared.

Be of good cheer for I believe God.

As the saying goes, “Don’t tell God how big your storm is. Tell the storm how big your God is.” God visited Paul through an angel and encouraged him greatly. He reminded him of his mission to stand before Caesar and reassured him that neither he nor his fellow-travelers would be lost in the storm.

Acts 27:21-25  
21 But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss. 
22 And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship. 
23 For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, 
24 Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. 
25 Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.  

When you stand in the center of God’s will nothing can stop you! Paul had been called to stand before kings, including Caesar the world leader of his day. While still in Ephesus, he said, “ After I have been in  Jerusalem I MUST also see Rome.

Acts 19:21:
After these things were ended, Paul purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome.

Paul was making his way to Rome in the midst of a storm so violent that even the intrepid apostle feared that he and his mission would end up at the bottom of the raging sea together with the rest of the passengers. But God is greater than the fiercest storm, and he not only saved him, but also gave him the souls of all those who were on board.

How powerful and gracious our God is! How encouraging to know that nothing can overcome us when we follow God’s navigational course for our lives. Even as the ship was breaking apart beneath his feet, Paul was in his fair haven. He boldly declared to the frightened crew, “BE OF GOOD CHEER!”

Acts 27:25:
Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.

One man named Paul dared to believe God, and 276 souls were saved from certain death. It was Paul’s faith in God’s promise that saved those men.  Even greater, it was through the faith of the one man, the Lord Jesus, that “whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). He has reassured us, saying, In the world ye shall have tribulation: but BE OF GOOD CHEER; I have overcome the world (John 16:33).  

All the Lord asks of us is to believe him and trust that it will be as he told us. If he tells you to walk on water, you can be sure he will keep you above the water as you look to him. And if like Peter you waver in your faith and start sinking, he will stretch out his hand and pull you out of the deep. You can never sink so low that the hand of the Lord cannot reach you.

He took bread and gave thanks to God

No one can live long without food. Our bodies need physical food even as our souls require spiritual nourishment to survive. While we are fully aware of our need for physical bread how much do we realize our urgent need for the bread of life which is the word of God?

Matthew 4:4:
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

For fourteen days Paul and his shipmates went without food. Just before they washed ashore Malta, Paul urged his fellow-travelers to eat in order to receive the strength they needed to complete the last leg of their voyage.

Acts 27:33-37:
33 And while the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried and continued fasting, having taken nothing. 
34 Wherefore I pray you to take some meat: for this is for your health: for there shall not an hair fall from the head of any of you. 
35 And when he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat. 
36 Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat. 
37 And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.  

How strongly this passage evokes the Last Supper! On the night he knew he would be arrested and tortured, Jesus ate bread and drank wine with his disciples. Herein is a lesson for us all. If we want to finish our course, we must eat the spiritual food he provides. Make no mistake about it! If we do not partake of the Lord’s supper, the perfect sacrifice in his flesh and blood, we will NOT finish our course. We will fall short, shipwrecked in the faith. Paul was shipwrecked in Malta but never in his faith. He kept his faith to the very end of his life. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing the Word of God. If we are to keep the faith it is necessary for us to feed on, meditate, assimilate, and live by our daily bread, the Word of God. 

Paul and the 265 other passengers safely reached the shores of Malta. They lost the ship but they didn’t lose their lives. Truly the Lord knows how to preserve his own.
When the Lord leads you to Fair Havens, don’t despise it in favor of Phoenix. Stay where Jesus wants you. Don’t be deceived. The “Phoenixes” in life have nothing to offer you except heartache and loss. Fair Havens is your true destiny and place of rest.
Even if you going through the roughest storm of your life, trust God with all your heart. Keep the faith by feeding on his Word, and he will see you through to the shores of heaven.

Numbers 6:24-26:
24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: 
25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 
26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

 

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