Are you familiar with God’s providence? “What is providence?” asks question 11 in the Shorter Westminster Catechism. There providence is defined as God's care, wisdom, and power to preserve and govern all of his creatures and their actions. God sees the future and has a plan. The word "providence" means the ability to foresee what is coming and make provision for it. In the Bible, providence means that God is aware of what is happening in people's lives and is invested in how things go for them.
Providence was at work in the life of Paul and his companions. God was working all things together for good for Paul who loved him and was called according to God’s purpose. The good news was the storm was over, and land was within sight. But the bad news was the waves were destroying the ship and there were prisoners aboard. What to do? The soldiers didn’t want anyone to escape on their watch. Perhaps they had heard about Peter and John escaping. Not on their watch. Solution: kill the prisoners. But the centurion wanted Paul to live.
Those who could swim were encouraged to jump overboard first and get to land. Others floated to shore on planks. Everyone arrived safely. All’s well that ends well. It was not by chance that God placed a centurion in charge to keep Paul alive. God wanted Paul to live, too. Our life-giving God also wants us to live. Jesus said, “I have come that you may have life and have it to the full.” God who created life is in favor of life. Our awakening this morning from sleep is a sure sign that God wants us to live and has a purpose for us. We should thank him for providence today!
