Monday's Blessing
Jonah 2:1-2
"Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish, and he said, 'I called out of my distress to the Lord, and He answered me. I cried for help from the depth of "Sheol; You heard my voice.'"
After receiving my initial diagnosis of a chronic illness, I hid. I can still remember the doctor saying, "There is no cure for this. It is manageable if you are diligent. But you must be careful it does not evolve into something more."
"Why?" I cried out. Hadn't I been through enough already? I just lost my vision for a new educational facility when the doors closed. There were no jobs in the prospect because I was simply just plain too old to secure another teaching position in a school that would pay efficiently. So I hid from God. Oh, I prayed and went through the rudimentary steps, but there were many days my broken heart wondered why I was forsaken.
Humanity has a history of hiding from God when times are tough. The prophet Jonah tried to run away from God when he didn't want to accept what God was telling him. God told Jonah to travel 500 miles from home and preach to the city of Nineveh. What did Jonah do? He ran the other way. But God has a way of finding us each time no matter where we hide. He brought on a great storm when Jonah was a stowaway. Jonah convinced the crew to throw him overboard because he knew he caused the storm. When they did a great fish swallowed him. He was in the fish's belly for three days and three nights.
Finally "Then Jonah prayed.... from the stomach of the fish." (Jonah 2:1). And God heard. "From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry." (verse 2) His prayer was a piecemeal collection from all the Psalms praising God. As soon as Jonah finished his prayer God directed the fish to vomit him up on the beach. From there he headed to Nineveh to fulfill his original calling.
When we hide, and we pray, God is still there to help us even if our desperation has rose out of disobedience or avoidance of Him.
I knew I couldn't stay upset with God and hide forever. It just wasn't in my makeup. So I asked for guidance asking God what he would like me to do now. And in the glimpse of an early fall evening God told me to offer my writing skills to those who need their souls filled. It was at that moment God's Message Today was born.
Jonah 2:1-2
"Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish, and he said, 'I called out of my distress to the Lord, and He answered me. I cried for help from the depth of "Sheol; You heard my voice.'"
After receiving my initial diagnosis of a chronic illness, I hid. I can still remember the doctor saying, "There is no cure for this. It is manageable if you are diligent. But you must be careful it does not evolve into something more."
"Why?" I cried out. Hadn't I been through enough already? I just lost my vision for a new educational facility when the doors closed. There were no jobs in the prospect because I was simply just plain too old to secure another teaching position in a school that would pay efficiently. So I hid from God. Oh, I prayed and went through the rudimentary steps, but there were many days my broken heart wondered why I was forsaken.
Humanity has a history of hiding from God when times are tough. The prophet Jonah tried to run away from God when he didn't want to accept what God was telling him. God told Jonah to travel 500 miles from home and preach to the city of Nineveh. What did Jonah do? He ran the other way. But God has a way of finding us each time no matter where we hide. He brought on a great storm when Jonah was a stowaway. Jonah convinced the crew to throw him overboard because he knew he caused the storm. When they did a great fish swallowed him. He was in the fish's belly for three days and three nights.
Finally "Then Jonah prayed.... from the stomach of the fish." (Jonah 2:1). And God heard. "From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry." (verse 2) His prayer was a piecemeal collection from all the Psalms praising God. As soon as Jonah finished his prayer God directed the fish to vomit him up on the beach. From there he headed to Nineveh to fulfill his original calling.
When we hide, and we pray, God is still there to help us even if our desperation has rose out of disobedience or avoidance of Him.
I knew I couldn't stay upset with God and hide forever. It just wasn't in my makeup. So I asked for guidance asking God what he would like me to do now. And in the glimpse of an early fall evening God told me to offer my writing skills to those who need their souls filled. It was at that moment God's Message Today was born.
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