EXPAND TO READ: JONAH 1 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 3): I have often tried to do things my own way, attempting to “flee Your presence” just as Jonah attempted to do here. I would try to flee Your presence in a way, because I wasn’t willing in the moment to take on the challenge You wanted me to pursue at that time. Please forgive me for this, Father. Forgive me for even remotely thinking that I could escape Your presence at all, let alone when You’ve asked me to do something.
PROMISE (verses 14-15, 17): Not a direct promise here, but You do show us a promise in a sense, Father. When you want something to occur, You will make sure it happens. When Jonah decided to try and run from Your will for his life, You caused a storm that forced him to stop in his tracks. Then You appointed a large fish to essentially take him inside and carry him to the location You wanted him to go to in the first place. Had Jonah listened in the first place, none of this would have happened, but since he refused to listen initially, choosing to run instead, You made sure that he would either do Your will for his life or die trying to avoid it.
ATTITUDE (verses 9-12): Although Jonah willingly put himself into a poor situation by attempting to evade You, he did have a somewhat redemptive moment in a sense. When he was approached by the other men on the ship during the storm, he was honest about being a follower of Yours. In addition to that, he was honest about the proper way ahead for those men to escape the storm the ship was in, which involved throwing Jonah into the raging waters. Help me to be humble and honest like this, Father, in the turmoil of life that I get myself into with my poor decisions.
COMMAND (verse 2): In this verse, Jonah was commanded to preach against the wickedness being used against You. Help me to become more knowledgeable and outspoken so that I may be empowered by You to appropriately speak up to others concerning You, Father. Help me to follow this command You gave to Judah in my normal, day-to-day life so that I may glorify You through the wisdom You provide to me, Father.
EXAMPLE (verses 12, 15-17): The example You give me here is that through Jonah’s dissent, You still wanted to use him. Although he ran from Your will for him, you never gave up on him. You continued to pursue him and just when the other men of the ship decided to throw him overboard in order to save themselves from the storm, You provided a means to save Jonah from the ocean via a large fish of some sort. Thank You for this protection example, Father. Thank You for showing me that when I am the exact person You expect and/or need to perform something according to Your will, that even through my mistakes You will find a way.
*DAILY NOTE: You often, almost always it seems, use the brokenness in our lives to glorify Your kingdom even more. If we were to allow You to fully work in us, the brokenness we experience in this life could be used for so many things to glorify Your kingdom. Unfortunately, for me, I often lock You out and don’t allow You to use my experiences, whether good nor bad, to glorify You. I get stuck in my feels and emotions and I lock out not only You, but everyone else. Help me to become better at this, Father. Help me to take ALL things to You so that You may turnaround and use those experiences for Your glory. Help me to be more pleasing to You in this way, so that others may feel and experience the perfect love that only You can provide to us.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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