Setbacks Can’t Derail God’s Purpose

In Acts 27:24 it says, “Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.” (NLT)

Sometimes a setback is rooted in my own actions or choices. I made a mistake. I did something that hurt another person. I disobeyed God. And now I’m facing a storm as a result.

But often the storms I face in life aren’t because of something I did. Instead, I suffer because of other people’s poor decisions—or even their sins.

Acts 27 gives us a dramatic example of suffering a setback because of the foolish choices of others. Paul had been unfairly put on trial for crimes he didn’t commit. He was a Roman citizen, so he had the opportunity to appeal to Caesar in capital-offense cases.

On the prison ship heading toward Rome, Paul told the others that they were headed toward disaster. But no one listened, and it didn’t take too long before they hit a terrible storm.

But that didn’t mean the storm sidetracked God’s purpose for Paul—and a storm doesn’t have to sidetrack God’s purpose for me either.

God’s purpose for my life is greater than any setback I’ll ever go through. An angel assured Paul of that in Acts 27:24: “Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you” (NLT).

The angel told Paul that, despite the setback, he would one day stand before Caesar and share his testimony. God’s purpose wouldn’t be thwarted.

God doesn’t need a Plan B for my life. Hitting a setback—whether it’s my fault or someone else’s—doesn’t mean God won’t work through my life. When disaster hits, God just fits it into his plans.

When someone else’s decision turns my life upside down, God uses it for his glory. When someone else’s mistake puts me in a difficult situation, God works through it anyway.

When I feel like I’ve lost everything, God does the incredible so I can do the impossible.

No one can sink God’s purposes. 

In my own life, things might happen that seem like tremendous setbacks and I wonder if I’m on the right track.  I may not always understand it when it’s happening, but if I look back on it, I can usually see God’s purpose and will being accomplished.  

How Will My Decision Affect Others?

Romans 14:12-13 says, “Each of us will give an account of himself to God. So don’t criticize each other anymore. Try instead to live in such a way that you will never make your brother stumble by letting him see you doing something he thinks is wrong.” (TLB)

One of the biggest mistakes I can make is forgetting how much my actions influence those around me. Every day I’m tempted to make decisions that may seem best for me but could have a devastating effect on the people around me. To make wise decisions, I need to ask, “Will my choice harm others?”

This is the opposite of our culture. Our society teaches us to think only of ourselves. But God wants me to think about others, not just myself. In fact, the Bible says that one day I’m going to be judged by God on how my decisions affected others.

Romans 14:12-13 says, “Each of us will give an account of himself to God. So don’t criticize each other anymore. Try instead to live in such a way that you will never make your brother stumble by letting him see you doing something he thinks is wrong” (TLB).

I may not like hearing this, but I'm being watched—all the time. As a parent / grandparent, I should be especially aware that little eyes are always observing. I’ve got to be careful about what I say and do because I’m influencing not just my life but the next generation as well.

Show respect for those who serve and protect our community. If a police officer pulls you over for a ticket, even if you think they’re wrong, treat them with respect.

Don’t call in sick when you’re actually taking your family to the beach for the day.

Don’t bring supplies home that you stole from the office to use for personal benefit.

Don’t cheat on taxes—and then brag about it in front of your kids.

Don’t watch the awful stuff that’s on TV and in the movies with your kids. Think about whether I should be watching it at all.

Mature people limit their freedom for the benefit of others. Not because they’re afraid of what other people think, but because they’re motivated by love. In situations where there is no clear right or wrong, ask, “How will my decision affect others?”

So, I need to be cautious and not base my moral judgments on my opinion, personal dislikes, or cultural bias rather than on the Word of God. I can cause my brothers or sisters to stumble. Paul wants to remind me to be both strong in faith and sensitive to others' needs. I need to constantly monitor the effects of my behavior on others.  

I need to constantly monitor the effects of my behavior on others.  Everything I do influences someone else. 

Instead of Grumbling, Give Thanks

In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 I read, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (NIV)

Fretting and fighting over the small stuff will always cause me to lose my happiness. This is a hard habit to break because I’m negative by nature and conditioned by culture.  All my life, I have been going around excusing and accusing. I excuse myself for the mistakes I make, but accuse everybody else for my mistakes.

I tend to think, “If I just had <fill in the blank>, then I’d be happy.” This “when and then” thinking. But I am as happy as I choose to be! I can’t blame anybody else for my unhappiness because happiness is a choice. I have to stop excusing and accusing; I have to stop fretting and fighting over the small stuff.

The Bible says, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure” (Philippians 2:14-15 NIV).

Those may be some of the most difficult verses in the Bible. But the scariest verse in the Bible to me is Matthew 12:36, where Jesus says, “And I tell you that on the Judgment Day people will be responsible for every careless thing they have said” (NCV).  

This sends shivers up my spine. How many times have I complained, grumbled, or argued about something when I shouldn’t have been sweating the small stuff? The first law of life is this: Don’t sweat the small stuff.  Law number two is this: It’s almost all small stuff!

The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (NIV). Gratitude is the healthiest attitude.

What do I have to be thankful for? Remember, no matter what is going on in my life, God is always with me, God is always in me, and God is always for me.  And that’s cause for gratitude, not grumbling.

In summary, fretting and fighting over the small stuff will always cause me to lose my happiness. This is a hard habit to break because I’m negative by nature and conditioned by culture, going around excusing and accusing. I excuse myself for the mistakes I make, but accuse everybody else for my mistakes. I tend to think, “If I just had <fill in the blank>, then I’d be happy.” This “when and then” thinking. But I am as happy as I choose to be! I can’t blame anybody else for my unhappiness because happiness is a choice. I have to stop excusing and accusing; I have to stop fretting and fighting over the small stuff. Scripture reminds me to “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that I may become blameless and pure”. These may be the most difficult verses in the Bible. But the scariest verse says, “On the Judgment Day people (I) will be responsible for every careless thing they (I) have said”. How many times have I complained, grumbled, or argued about something when I shouldn’t have been sweating the small stuff? The first law of life is this: Don’t sweat the small stuff.  Law number two is this”It’s almost all small stuff! In today’s scripture I’m reminded to “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for me”. Gratitude is the healthiest attitude. No matter what is going on, God is always with me, in me, and for me. And that’s cause for gratitude, not grumbling.

Paul wasn't teaching that I should thank God for everything that happens to me, but in everything. Evil does not come from God, so I should not thank him for it. But when evil strikes, I can still be thankful for God's presence and for the good that he will accomplish through distress.  

My Choices Can Change My Life

In Romans 8:28 I read, “Every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." (The Message)

As Psalm 139:14 says, God made me “wonderfully complex” (NLT). So, to fulfill God’s purpose for me, it’s essential to look at every dimension of my life and understand the five factors that influence my identity.

For the last few days, I’ve looked at how my chemistry, connections, circumstances, and consciousness affect the way I am shaped.

If these factors are like the five cards I’m dealt in a game of poker, then the fifth factor would be my wild card. Why? Because the fifth factor is my choices, and that wild card affects all my other cards. I can’t control the hand I was dealt—but I can use my wildcard to change my life by the choices I make.

The Bible says that I was created in the image of God. No other creature was created in the image of God! Dogs have instincts, but don’t know the difference between right and wrong. Elephants have no moral compass. But I get to choose to do right or wrong. The freedom to choose is humanity’s greatest blessing; it’s also our greatest curse because we make poor choices all the time that harm us and everyone around us.

What does a wild card do? It can change the suit and number of the other cards I'm dealt. I didn’t choose my chemistry, but I can choose what I do with my body. I didn’t choose my connections, but I can make new relationships and mend or nurture the ones I already have. I don’t choose all of my circumstances, but I do choose how I respond to every circumstance. I can’t change the fact that my consciousness—my thoughts—control my life, but I can choose what I think about.

The Bible says, “Every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good” Romans 8:28 (The Message). It may be hard to see the good that can come out of some aspects of the hand I was dealt. But the good choices I make are one of the ways God works those difficult parts of my identity into something good.

My identity is shaped by my choices. What choices will I make today that will positively affect the rest of my life?

In summary, God made me “wonderfully complex”. To fulfill God’s purpose for me, it’s essential to look at every dimension of my life and understand the five factors that influence my identity. My chemistry, connections, circumstances, and consciousness affect the way I am shaped. If these factors are like the five cards I’m dealt in a game of poker, then the fifth factor would be my wild card. Because the fifth factor are my choices, and that affects all my other cards. I can’t control the hand I was dealt, but I can use my wildcard to change my life by the choices I make. I was created in the image of God. I get to choose to do right or wrong. The freedom to choose is humanity’s greatest blessing; it’s also my greatest curse because I make poor choices all the time that harm me and everyone around us. A wild card can change the suit and number of the other cards I'm dealt. I can choose what I do with my body. I can make new relationships and mend or nurture the ones I already have. I do choose how I respond to every circumstance. And I can choose what I think about. Every detail in my life of love for God is worked into something good. It may be hard to see the good that can come out of some aspects of the hand I was dealt. But the good choices I make are one of the ways God works those difficult parts of my identity into something good. My identity is shaped by my choices. What choices will I make today that will positively affect the rest of my life?

God works in "everything", not just isolated incidents, for my good. God is not working to make me happy, but to fulfill his purpose. I am learning to trust in God and not in life's treasures, my security is in heaven, not on earth. My faith should not waver in pain and persecution, because I know that God is with me.