Saving souls on their way to shipwreck...

Another of Carter's messages that has sunk deep into my spirit - the shipwreck episode in Paul's life, towards the closing chapters of Acts.

Paul's been through all of it - great miracles, great showdowns, great supernatural stuff - proving to believers, to-be-converts, pagan spectators, everyone alike - of God's indisputable power. However, come to the shipwreck chapter in his life and Paul, a man seasoned in miracles, has to fight it out in the natural. God didn't calm the storm and transport him instantaneously to dry land! He is very much in the midst of the storm,with 275 others, many of whom are prisoners like Paul, on their way to meet Ceaser in Rome.

The storm builds up. Paul gets to move from his position of captive to Captain and instructs the rest what to do. He gets the opportunity to preach the gospel in the midst of the storm and save 275 souls - not just from immediate physical death in the waves of the sea but from the flames of hell. All 276 of them had to stay afloat clinging on to pieces of wood till a day's time let them reach the shores of Malta.

Paul was allowed to go through this trial filled journey only to save 275 others from shipwrecking their souls! God empowered Him to fight it out in the natural. Just as God's word had spoken though him - that all aboard would be safe - ALL reached Malta safely. Not one perished. Statistically speaking this is a 'tail event'!!! Very low probability that ALL would reach shore safely. God carried them in His hands to prove that His word is true and got 275 converts for the Kingdom.Wow! Our hardships are being used/will be used by God to save somebody. Rejoice! Our lives are not about saving our own lives but others'!

"The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." Jesus (John 12:25)

Thoughts...

No, I am not talking about thoughts as we know of as our enemy! =). I am thinking how does God and how can God know our thoughts! We may casually skim over the verses that say that God knows man's every thought. Yeah, He is God and so he knows everything, including our thoughts. What's the big deal?!

Why don't we stop and think for a moment? Wow! Do you realize how impossible, at least scientifically, it is for someone else to know our thoughts?!!! Let's try to analyze what we call us "thoughts". Thoughts can be words, images, recollection and/or fresh processing of information stored in our brain or translation into 'storable' pieces of information, of what we perceive through our senses.

How can thoughts be interpreted without a medium? If God can see our thoughts, there must be some medium (invisible to our eyes) through which information from our brains or minds gets communicated to Him. I believe this is through the "Spirit". In the book of Genesis, we read that God breathed his Spirit into man and man became a living being. Elsewhere we read, "in Him we move about and have our being". So human beings have this umbilical cord with his Creator. So it's not surprising that God can read our thoughts. Guess He has a super computer that records every thought from every individual. Wow! There's no escape on Judgment day.