(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)
(Jonah 2:1-10) Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish, 2 and he said,“I called out of my distress to the Lord,
And He answered me.
I called for help from the depth of Sheol;
You heard my voice.
3 For You threw me into the deep,
Into the heart of the seas,
And the current flowed around me.
All Your breakers and waves passed over me.
4 So I said, ‘I have been cast out of Your sight.
Nevertheless I will look again toward Your holy temple.’
5 Water encompassed me to the point of death.
The deep flowed around me,
Seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 I descended to the base of the mountains.
The earth with its bars was around me forever,
But You have brought up my life from the pit, Lord my God.
7 While I was fainting away,
I remembered the Lord,
And my prayer came to You,
Into Your holy temple.
8 Those who are followers of worthless idols
Abandon their faithfulness,
9 But I will sacrifice to You
With a voice of thanksgiving.
That which I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation is from the Lord.”
10 Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah up onto the dry land.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
As Jonah tried to run away, God helped him get "even further". I mean how far away can one get than in the belly of a fish in the middle of the sea wrapped in seaweed? But God can reach us anywhere. And still, I'm assuming with stubborn pride, even though Jonah had no other options, he held out for three days before crying out to the Lord.
Whether the Lord saved Jonah from the fish or not, if Jonah had died there in that fish, he was saved from eternal death because he was a believer. But since God was not yet finished with Jonah here on earth, Jonah was physically delivered to shore. My takeaway from all of this is not just about confessing our sins as soon as possible, but trying not to ever run away from God in the first place! I mean - we will - but if we can avoid all of that, why not strive to continuously live in God's will?
To not run away doesn't just mean physically, it can be mentally or emotionally. And instead of looking at it from a negative standpoint, we should consider this from a positive standpoint. For everything in life, let us run to God and His word to find out what He says, pray about it, and then trust that the Lord will work all things out for good, while giving us His strength and guidance! And when we do stumble or stray, as soon as possible, run back to God and confess. THIS is how we remain steadfast!
FYI: People often think that this story couldn't be true, as it sounds quite incredible. But I remember seeing an episode in 1976 from "The Undersea World of Jacque Cousteau" called "The Fish That Swallowed Jonah". People have assumed it was a whale that swallowed Jonah, but these experts on sea life say that it was most likely one of the larger species of groupers. The Fish That Swallowed Jonah, Episode 35 of 36, Jacques Cousteau Odyssey - YouTube
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