In May of 2013, a series of storms blew through North Texas, igniting 16 tornados, the deadliest hitting near the town of Granbury.
Six people died, and a hundred more were injured.
When the winds of destruction come against us, where do we run and where can we hide? Sometimes it seems the devil attacks from every side, and there is no place to escape the ensuing devastation.
In his evangelistic travels Paul faced a storm of unimaginable destruction. No matter how far he ran, there was no place to hide, for those against him would not let him go. They ignited a storm of controversy, and they were determined Paul would not be allowed to preach another day.
In Acts 17:9 the Jews in Thessalonica created a great turmoil around Paul and his team by lies and persistence, until the rulers of the city demanded Paul’s team leave the region. When Paul could not be found, the Jews formed a mob, and they were determined to vent their anger on someone. They dragged Paul’s host and benefactor, Jason, out of his home, blaming him for proclaiming Jesus as king instead of Caesar.
Jason was forced to put up a security bond, guaranteeing that Paul and his evangelistic team would exit the city with due haste, never to return.
The storm continued in Acts 17:14. Paul and his team traveled to Berea, where the Jews received the Message with open minds. Yet even there the Jews from Thessalonica stirred up the dust of contention.
The brethren in Berea sent Paul to the Aegean Sea, so that he could be taken to Athens, a place more conducive to his ministry.
After leaving Athens (and enduring some trouble there!) Paul came to Corinth. In Acts 18:6, once again he was opposed, and when the Jews blasphemed, he rose up in disgust, shaking the dust of the controversy from his clothing, and crying unto them, “I have attempted to minister unto my own people, but now your blood is upon your heads. From here on out, I will proclaim the Message of the Christ unto the gentiles.”
The culmination of the storm is seen in Acts 19:21, where the Holy Spirit sends Paul to Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost, and later to Rome, itself, where he begins the greatest and most significant portions of his ministry.
When the devil comes at us, changing our physical location won’t remove us from the storm. The tempest is not of an earthly mien, but of a spiritual one.
Just as the storm in Granbury changed the lives of its citizens, so the storm in Paul’s life changed his. When he could not outrun the tempest, he shook the dust of the storm from his robes, and he let God take him a new direction.
When the devil sends a storm against us, God simply allows the winds to carry us a new direction.
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