Have you ever had one of those days that make you wonder, "What else can go wrong?" This little story about a snakebite might help put them in perspective.
After being shipwrecked, Paul and the others make it to the shore of Malta. Even though they're cold, wet, and exhausted, at least they're on land. As they sit around a fire, a snake comes out and latches itself to Paul's hand. The islanders see it and immediately assume this man was a murderer. He thought he could escape justice, but it caught up to him. In their minds, perhaps, Paul may have outwitted the sea, but not the goddess of justice, Dike.
How quickly they thought they had Paul figured out.
We still do the same thing. We can be too quick to explain someone else’s hardship. Some people will hear of a diagnosis, a failed relationship, job loss, or some other pressing circumstance and assume it's God's way of sending a message. God’s punishment, even.
This moment in Acts 28, though, shows us to be careful about building that kind of theology around a single moment.
The islanders were completely wrong about Paul. The snakebite wasn't a punishment or a sign that God had abandoned him. If anything, they should've felt bad for Paul. This was one more difficulty on an already long journey.
Not everything that happens to you is a judgment on your life. Sometimes, life in a broken world simply hurts. Thankfully, God's faithfulness is not measured by our circumstances. The presence of a snake did not mean God wasn't present for Paul. The same is true for us.
You may not understand every trial, but you can trust that God is still at work, even when others misread what's happening. Even when you are tempted to misread it, too.
Stay blessed...john
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