What Would You Like To Do Over?
Good Morning Friends,
I think that the most powerful prayer that Jonah ever prayed was in the belly of a fish. It was a prayer offered after his confession… after he had been thrown overboard…after he had been rescued from a watery grave. It is a prayer of thanksgiving in a time of trouble. Here Jonah prayed the Psalms. He prayed parts of Psalm 18, 31 and 107. In times of trouble we can pray the Psalms too. When we cannot find the words, they give us the words. They speak for us. They teach us about God’s deliverance. They teach us of a God of second chances. We can find a lot in the psalms. Praise psalms, complaint psalms, despair psalms, indignant psalms and even “get my enemy” psalms. David is particularly transparent in his psalms. Thankfully we do not have to go from memory. So if you feel like you have been thrown overboard go to the psalms. If you feel the humble and awkward situation of having been saved but not yet delivered, then discover that just as sin sinks the soul, grace lifts us up in a re-born compassion. Discover that Jonah had the Temple but we have Christ. Discover that God’s grace perseveres with us as it did with Jonah, for it is more powerful that any sin. God will answer us even if we are sinners. He does not rescue us because we are good. He answers us in spite of His judgment. He delivers us from impossible circumstances in order to win our undivided loyalty and thanks… So today we look at how God puts us back on the right track when we are distressed. We look at the process of praying in the belly of a fish for deliverance to a God of restoration. Today we draw a picture with God’s help of our very lives and deaths. Today we are thankful for second chances… for forgiveness. What Would You Like To Do Over?
Scripture: Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the belly of the fish, saying, “I called to the LORD out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all your waves and your billows passed over me. Then I said, ‘I am driven away from your sight; how shall I look again upon your holy temple?’ The waters closed in over me; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped around my head at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the Pit, O LORD my God. As my life was ebbing away, I remembered the LORD; and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple. Those who worship vain idols forsake their true loyalty. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the LORD!” Then the LORD spoke to the fish, and it spewed Jonah out upon the dry land.
Jonah 2:1-10 (NRSV)
Message: What has God erased from your life? We all have those ooh, ouch wish we could take it back moments. How we respond in tough times is really a measure of our spiritual maturity and it really becomes transparent if we can handle it or if we are completely overwhelmed and swallowed up by our circumstances and feel doomed to fail. We react in different ways. Whether we are young or old… Whether we are rich or poor…there are those times where we blame ourselves for our situations and tough times. Sometimes we blame God when we have a crisis. And sometimes like Jonah there are times where we just have to give it up to God and pray in a secluded place until something better happens. Here when God has gotten our attention we have to face the reality that God did not abandon us…we too often abandon Him. Here we discover that God brings tough times into our lives to rub out our mistakes and bring us back to an image of what we are intended to be. Here God not only brings us back to Him but back to our better selves. Then we get to see the world the way He sees it. Then we too get a chance to witness to others what God has done in our lives…but we also get a chance and maybe even a second chance to become compassionate for others.
Pray with praise for our God who gives us a second chance when we have sinned. Pray with thanksgiving as Jonah for the means of deliverance that God provides to us when we are honest with God. Pray we experience grace when we need a change of direction. Pray we repent. Pray that next time we heed the warning signs. Pray we demonstrate hope in the resurrection through our actions in tough times. Pray we actually care for others and not be simply thankful for our own salvation. Pray we are interested in people who are different from ourselves. Pray that God erase the prejudice on our hearts. Pray we can witness in a personal way what God has done in our lives. Pray we not cling to worthless things. Pray we not try to escape our responsibility to do God’s will. Pray we do not let our emotions deprive us of grace. Pray that we meditate on God’s ways and ask Him to change our hearts. Pray we run to, not away from God. Pray we be humbled by God’s grace and filled with joy as we are awed by God. Pray we call upon Him in our day of trouble. Pray that He deliver us. Pray that we glorify Him in response. Pray because God is good even when we are not. Pray because God is powerful enough to fix anything. Pray because prayer will change us for the better. Pray because God is a God of new beginnings. Pray because our God is a God of fresh starts. Pray we do not let pride blind us to an experience of God’s grace.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 