Jonah 2:1-10
Relax, Read and Reflect
Prayer-Lord, Open our hearts and open our minds and help us learn. Go- Fight-Win. Amen.
Jonah's Prayer
1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. 2 He said: "In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave [a] I called for help, and you listened to my cry.
3 You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me.
4 I said, 'I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.'
5 The engulfing waters threatened me, [b] the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God.
7 "When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.
8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.
9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD."
10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
When you spend a little time in the belly of a fish, you get to reflect. Read Jonah’s prayer again. This is a prayer of thanksgiving. The amazing thing is that when Jonah was popular and really walking with God, he turned away and ran. After he has hit the bottom, instead of being depressed, he rejoices.
We do the same. When things are really going smooth we tend to take our relationship with God for granted. It is only after catastrophe strikes that we reach out for God. The highs and lows that this relationship creates are difficult for all Christians. A constant obedience with God frees us to do his work, so why can’t we live that way?
Jonah is not bitter. It takes a lot of bad things to bring Jonah around to Gods wishes. What if God had not brought the bad things on, then Jonah would have run from his God forever, and neither would have profited. Same with us. We learn from our mistakes, (hopefully) and that it how we grow in our spiritual life. When things are not going good, give thanks, for we might be able to use these obstacles to strengthen our relationship with God.
Prayer- Lord, Thanks for giving us all the good times, and thanks for giving us opportunities to grow. Go- Fight- Win. Amen.
Prayer-Lord, Open our hearts and open our minds and help us learn. Go- Fight-Win. Amen.
Jonah's Prayer
1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. 2 He said: "In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave [a] I called for help, and you listened to my cry.
3 You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me.
4 I said, 'I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.'
5 The engulfing waters threatened me, [b] the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God.
7 "When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.
8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.
9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD."
10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
When you spend a little time in the belly of a fish, you get to reflect. Read Jonah’s prayer again. This is a prayer of thanksgiving. The amazing thing is that when Jonah was popular and really walking with God, he turned away and ran. After he has hit the bottom, instead of being depressed, he rejoices.
We do the same. When things are really going smooth we tend to take our relationship with God for granted. It is only after catastrophe strikes that we reach out for God. The highs and lows that this relationship creates are difficult for all Christians. A constant obedience with God frees us to do his work, so why can’t we live that way?
Jonah is not bitter. It takes a lot of bad things to bring Jonah around to Gods wishes. What if God had not brought the bad things on, then Jonah would have run from his God forever, and neither would have profited. Same with us. We learn from our mistakes, (hopefully) and that it how we grow in our spiritual life. When things are not going good, give thanks, for we might be able to use these obstacles to strengthen our relationship with God.
Prayer- Lord, Thanks for giving us all the good times, and thanks for giving us opportunities to grow. Go- Fight- Win. Amen.
posted by Steve Killam TMTL | 5:52 AM
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