Quote for the Day
“…you brought my life up from the pit, O Lord my God.”
Today's Prayer
This week pray for those traveling that they may look inwardly at their emotions and ask what God is trying to say. Ask God to let them hear Him clearly so they can seek His will alone.
Jonah 1:17-2:10
Jonah 1:17-2:10 (NIV)17 But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.Jonah 2Jonah’s Prayer1 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 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, 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.
Message
Well, being thrown into the sea is no great pleasure, and Jonah knows his fate, but once again God has a different plan. Rather than a quick death by drowning, God has a plan for salvation by a fish. (A really BIG fish!) We have seen Jonah as a reluctant and disobedient man. Now we see his emotions sink into a great depression. In verses 1 through 10 of the second chapter we see Jonah cry out to God several times. With his world crashing in around him, he is forced to acknowledge his total dependence on God. After three days in the belly of the whale, Jonah finally understands that God alone is the one who can save, and he reaches out to God for salvation AND God provides.While we may not need a long weekend inside a whale, such as Jonah did, to bring us to a state of anger, depression, and dependence, we can all learn from the emotions God has given us. He desires our attention and will bring us to whatever state necessary for us to listen to HIS love and will for our life. What state of mind has God brought you to this week? Are you listening and responding, or still fleeing from God and His will for your life?
