Bible Text: Acts 28 | Speaker: Blake Nichols | Series: Acts | When I Ask Why
Acts 28  
There are days that cause us to ask, “Why, Lord?”  In Acts 28, Paul was having one of those Why Lord Days?  He was trying to get to Rome where God had directed him to go but there was a storm and a shipwreck and then he got bit by a viper. Things weren’t going as he had planned.

Why is a powerful word.  We want to trust God but we often question Him when our world starts to come apart and nothing seems to be going right.

What did Paul do when he encountered a Why Lord Day?  Verse 5: “But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects.”  He simply shook it off and went about what he had been doing.

We are able to get through a Why Lord Day? when we know it’s not about us. The islanders needed to see the power of God and it was revealed when Paul had no ill effects from the viper bite. We should open our eyes to see what God is doing around us and how He wants to use us to proclaim the Gospel and His love.  How we handle Why Lord Days? can be a testimony of the faithfulness of our God.
Sometimes the answer to a Why Lord Day? is God telling us to wait upon Him…to see what He is doing? Maybe He has a different direction or road for us to take.
Often the answer to a Why Lord Day? is a repeat of number one: it’s still not about us! Verse 15 tells us that Paul thanked God for his Christian brothers and sisters who encouraged Him. Ephesians 2:10:  ”For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”  We prefer to do the good works but sometimes God wants us to allow others to use their gifts to bless us.  It takes humility for this.
The answer to a Why Lord Day? is hope in God. We don’t give up!  Verse 20 speaks about the hope of Israel.  When all goes wrong, hope in God for He can be trusted.  He may want to clear everything from our life so our focus will be on Him….and Him alone.