This 5-day devotional draws directly from Josh Howerton's sermon “Your First Sermon with us” so you can keep engaging with the message all week. Read, reflect, and share it with your small group or friends.
When the Storm Hits, God Is Still Flying the Plane
Monday — Understanding the Truth
Have you ever felt completely out of control — not just inconvenienced, but genuinely helpless? Like no matter what you do, the situation is bigger than you?
Today's Scripture "Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar, and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you." — Acts 27:24
Reflection The Apostle Paul was a prisoner on a ship in the middle of a hurricane. He hadn't chosen this storm. He had actually warned the crew not to sail. But there he was — chains on his wrists, waves crashing over the deck, 275 other people losing hope around him.
And yet Paul was calm.
Not because the storm wasn't real. Not because he had a way out. But because he knew something the other 275 people didn't: someone else was in control of the outcome.
That's the truth at the heart of this week. You are not in control of the storms in your life — your marriage, your health, your finances, your kids, your career. But God is. And the God who parts seas, shuts the mouths of lions, and walks out of graves three days later has never once lost control of a situation.
The storm you're in right now is not a surprise to him. He knew. He knows. And he has a plan.
Today's Step Take a moment to name the storm you're in — out loud or in writing. Then ask yourself honestly: Am I trying to control the outcome, or am I trusting the One who already holds it?
A Closing Thought You don't have to have it figured out today. You just have to trust the One who does.
Calm Is Hard When the Plane Is Dropping
Tuesday — When It's Hard
Let's be honest — trusting God in a storm sounds beautiful in a devotional and feels nearly impossible at 2 a.m. when everything is falling apart.
Today's Scripture "When neither the sun nor the stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved." — Acts 27:20
Reflection Luke doesn't soften this moment. Fourteen days of hurricane-force winds. No sunlight. No stars to navigate by. Cargo thrown overboard. The steering tackle gone. And finally — they gave up all hope.
That's a real human moment. And if you're in a season like that right now, you're in good company with some very faithful people.
Here's what's hard about trusting God in the storm: it can feel like nothing is happening. The sky stays dark. The waves keep coming. You pray, and the situation doesn't change. You read your Bible, and the diagnosis doesn't improve. You do the right thing, and the relationship still feels broken.
It's easy to trust God when the south wind is gentle and the sailing is smooth. But when the storm has been raging for what feels like forever, and hope is slipping away — that's when trust costs something. That's when faith is actually faith.
The struggle you're feeling isn't weakness. It's the exact place where real trust gets built.
Today's Step If you're in a "no sun, no stars" season right now, don't pretend it's fine. Tell God exactly how you feel. He can handle your honesty — and he hasn't gone anywhere.
A Closing Thought Even in the darkest stretch of that storm, God's plan for Paul was still on track. Yours is too.
You Can't Afford to Skip the Basics
Wednesday — Putting It Into Practice
When life gets hard, what's the first thing you drop? For most of us, it's the very things that would actually help us survive.
Today's Scripture "For the last fourteen days you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food — you haven't eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive." — Acts 27:33–34
Reflection Paul looked around at 275 exhausted, terrified people who had been so consumed by the storm that they'd forgotten to eat. And he said, essentially: Stop. Sit down. Eat something. You cannot run on empty and expect to make it through this.
It's such a practical, human moment in the middle of a dramatic story. And it's a direct word for you today.
When a storm hits — a hard season at work, a struggling marriage, a health scare, a wave of anxiety — our instinct is to white-knuckle it and cut corners everywhere else. Church feels like one more thing. Prayer feels like it's not doing anything. Reading the Bible feels impossible when your mind won't slow down.
But those are exactly the things you can't afford to skip.
Daily prayer. Time in scripture. Staying connected with people who love you and love God. These aren't extras for easy seasons — they're the food that keeps you standing when the storm is at its worst.
The decisions you make in the storm shape who you are after it.
Today's Step Pick one basic spiritual practice you've been skipping — even five minutes of prayer, one chapter of scripture, one honest conversation with a trusted friend — and do it today.
A Closing Thought You don't have to have a perfect quiet time. You just have to show up. God will meet you there.
The Calm One in the Room Changes Everything
Thursday — What This Looks Like in Real Life
Have you ever been in a panic and had someone walk in who was completely steady? Something shifts in the room when that happens.
Today's Scripture "But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed." — Acts 27:22
Reflection Imagine a young man — we'll call him Marcus — who gets a call that his father has been diagnosed with a serious illness. The family is in crisis. His mom is spiraling with worry. His siblings are arguing about doctors and decisions. The house feels like it's filling with water.
Marcus is scared too. But something steadies him — not because he has answers, but because he's been in the habit of bringing his fears to God long before this moment arrived. So when his family looks to him, he doesn't pretend everything is fine. He says, "I don't know how this turns out. But I know who holds it. And I'm not going to stop trusting him."
That's it. That's the whole thing.
He doesn't fix anything. He doesn't have a plan. But his calm — rooted in genuine faith — gives the people around him something to hold onto.
This is what Paul did on that ship. A prisoner in chains became the steadiest person in the room because he knew who controlled the outcome. And it changed everything for 275 people.
Your faith in the storm is never just about you. Someone around you is watching, and they need to see what it looks like to trust God when it's hard.
Today's Step Think of one person in your life who is in a storm right now. How could your steadiness — even imperfect, honest steadiness — be an encouragement to them this week?
A Closing Thought You don't have to be fearless to be faith-full. You just have to keep pointing to the One who is.
Consider the Experience of the Pilot
Friday — Carrying It Forward
Before you head into the weekend, take one more look at the storm — and then take one long look at who's flying this plane.
Today's Scripture "For I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me." — Acts 27:25
Reflection This week, we've sat with Paul in a hurricane. We've been honest about how hard it is to trust God when the sky goes dark. We've talked about showing up for the basics when everything in us wants to check out. And we've seen what it looks like when one calm, faith-filled person steadies everyone around them.
Now here's the question to carry into the weekend: Do you trust the pilot?
Think about everything God has already done. He freed an entire nation from slavery. He provided food from nowhere and water from a rock. He brought men through a furnace without a single burn. He defeated death itself — walked out of a grave on a Sunday morning and changed everything.
That is the track record of the One who holds your storm.
His experience is perfect. His faithfulness is undefeated. And he is not surprised by where you are right now.
You don't have to figure out the ending. You don't have to control the outcome. You just have to trust the One who has never — not once — lost a passenger.
Today's Step As you move into the weekend, write down or quietly say aloud: "God, I trust you with this." Name the storm. Say it anyway. That's faith.
A Closing Thought The turbulence is real — but so is the pilot. And he has never once lost a plane.