Reason #965
I just finished week two of my Jonah study. I have to be honest here, I usually find myself completing the week's worth of bible study lessons the night before bible study. Talk about procrastination. The truth is, I kind of forget. Once Wednesday is over, the rest of the week is a blur, and when Sunday night rolls around I remember that bible study is in two days. I should do better. I can do better. And sometimes I get a little discouraged about the fact that I don't always make the most of my time. I feel bad that I don't spend it as wisely as I should. And I realize that the only person who can fix that is me.
Every time I crack open my bible, I wonder why I don't read it every chance I get. It never fails that the Lord will show me something incredible and speak such encouragement to me. It's exactly what I need, every single time. Tonight I studied the first chapter of Jonah. Last week, I learned about Jonah's attempt to run from God, and tonight I learned more about the storm. The storm that changed Jonah's rebellious plans. The storm that got Jonah back on track. The storm that Jonah knew he caused. The storm that saved many peoples' lives.
I really think storms are the perfect analogy. Because when it comes to storms, only God can control them. He can stir them up and He can command them to be still. He determines the length and severity of each storm, and He is the anchor through them all. In this instance, God stirred up the storm. Jonah was running in rebellion, and God sent a storm to get his attention. Really, Jonah brought this on himself, and he'd have to be crazy to think that he was really going to get away with his blatant disobedience. God loved him too much for that, and God had bigger plans for Jonah than slinking away to the bottom of a ship. God wanted to use Jonah, but Jonah didn't want to be used in the way God was calling Him. God wasn't asking Jonah to do something easy. This was a difficult task, and frankly, it went against everything Jonah wanted to do. God doesn't ask us to do easy things, but He does ask us to always do the right thing. Unfortunately, the right thing is rarely easy. And so Jonah, like most people, thought he could take the easy way out by running from God and avoiding God's instructions. Little did he realize, running from God is impossible.
Well the storm started brewing and the men on the ship wanted to know who was responsible. All signs pointed to Jonah and as they feared for their lives, they asked Jonah to pray to his God for mercy. Interesting that unbelievers would ask a believer to pray for them, isn't it? After all, if they didn't believe God existed, what would be the point of praying? But I suppose there was something deep down inside, maybe extreme fear, that caused them to come up with this request. Maybe it was one of those, "What do we have to lose?" attempts at saving their lives. But I think they were putting two and two together. Jonah had already told them that he was running away from God when he got on the ship, and they were listening. They were connecting the dots and realized that this God he ran away from was also, according to him, the God who controlled the seas. Therefore, Jonah's God could save them. He must have been the one who started it all, and He was the one who could fix it.
And so they threw Jonah overboard and immediately, the storm stopped. What a testimony to God's power! Only He can save. And don't you know those men couldn't deny it. Jonah's God was the one true God. The God of all the universe. And little did Jonah know, God was using him to show truth to those men. To open their eyes to see God's power, and to open their hearts to proclaim His praise. And as I am sure Jonah was fearing for his own life as he hit the waters, God had it all figured out. He had created the perfect storm not only to save those men but to save the people of Ninevah and to save Jonah. He was going to take care of them all in different ways.
God uses the storms for our benefit, but sometimes our storms benefit others, too. Sometimes, it's the people who are having to endure it with us, and sometimes it's just the people watching. But God's power is displayed in incredible, undeniable ways during our storms. And so we praise God for the storms because they change our lives, but we praise Him that He also uses them to changes the lives of others. Storms will come and storms will go, but God will always remain.
#965 - Because the storms not only change our lives but they change the lives of those watching.
"Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him." - Jonah 1:15-16
Every time I crack open my bible, I wonder why I don't read it every chance I get. It never fails that the Lord will show me something incredible and speak such encouragement to me. It's exactly what I need, every single time. Tonight I studied the first chapter of Jonah. Last week, I learned about Jonah's attempt to run from God, and tonight I learned more about the storm. The storm that changed Jonah's rebellious plans. The storm that got Jonah back on track. The storm that Jonah knew he caused. The storm that saved many peoples' lives.
I really think storms are the perfect analogy. Because when it comes to storms, only God can control them. He can stir them up and He can command them to be still. He determines the length and severity of each storm, and He is the anchor through them all. In this instance, God stirred up the storm. Jonah was running in rebellion, and God sent a storm to get his attention. Really, Jonah brought this on himself, and he'd have to be crazy to think that he was really going to get away with his blatant disobedience. God loved him too much for that, and God had bigger plans for Jonah than slinking away to the bottom of a ship. God wanted to use Jonah, but Jonah didn't want to be used in the way God was calling Him. God wasn't asking Jonah to do something easy. This was a difficult task, and frankly, it went against everything Jonah wanted to do. God doesn't ask us to do easy things, but He does ask us to always do the right thing. Unfortunately, the right thing is rarely easy. And so Jonah, like most people, thought he could take the easy way out by running from God and avoiding God's instructions. Little did he realize, running from God is impossible.
Well the storm started brewing and the men on the ship wanted to know who was responsible. All signs pointed to Jonah and as they feared for their lives, they asked Jonah to pray to his God for mercy. Interesting that unbelievers would ask a believer to pray for them, isn't it? After all, if they didn't believe God existed, what would be the point of praying? But I suppose there was something deep down inside, maybe extreme fear, that caused them to come up with this request. Maybe it was one of those, "What do we have to lose?" attempts at saving their lives. But I think they were putting two and two together. Jonah had already told them that he was running away from God when he got on the ship, and they were listening. They were connecting the dots and realized that this God he ran away from was also, according to him, the God who controlled the seas. Therefore, Jonah's God could save them. He must have been the one who started it all, and He was the one who could fix it.
And so they threw Jonah overboard and immediately, the storm stopped. What a testimony to God's power! Only He can save. And don't you know those men couldn't deny it. Jonah's God was the one true God. The God of all the universe. And little did Jonah know, God was using him to show truth to those men. To open their eyes to see God's power, and to open their hearts to proclaim His praise. And as I am sure Jonah was fearing for his own life as he hit the waters, God had it all figured out. He had created the perfect storm not only to save those men but to save the people of Ninevah and to save Jonah. He was going to take care of them all in different ways.
God uses the storms for our benefit, but sometimes our storms benefit others, too. Sometimes, it's the people who are having to endure it with us, and sometimes it's just the people watching. But God's power is displayed in incredible, undeniable ways during our storms. And so we praise God for the storms because they change our lives, but we praise Him that He also uses them to changes the lives of others. Storms will come and storms will go, but God will always remain.
#965 - Because the storms not only change our lives but they change the lives of those watching.
"Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once! The sailors were awestruck by the Lord’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him." - Jonah 1:15-16
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