It's amazing what God will show you...at 1:30 a.m.
This past Sunday, I attended church with two of my co-workers. It's nice being around others who are 1. my ages, and 2. living for and loving Christ. Their church's service started at 8 a.m. (yes...I actually made it out of bed and out of my apartment by 7:15...a miracle in itself! lol)
I left their service with a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit and wanting more. It was a little before 10 a.m. when I left their church, so I decided to make it for my church's service. One of the scriptures that our pastor referenced was pertaining to Jonah. (You know, the guy that got eaten by the whale...and he praised God while in the whale's belly until God caused the whale to spit him out...)
Most of her message was simply not to be afraid of whatever circumstances you face and praise God no matter what.
Me, not satisfied with someone else's revelation of scriptures, I decided to begin reading the book of Jonah that night after of me was just telling me "there's more to Jonah that just this isolated experience inside the whale."
So, like a child eager to place a hand on the blazing stove just to see it really is hot, I began reading. As I read the first few verses of the first chapter, I couldn't help but to gasp! I had touched the surface of a hot topic...a topic so intense, we often overlook in fear of being burned by the reality of it's truth (but we all know that the truth will set us free).
You see, before this whale incident, God gave Jonah specific orders. Jonah, for some reason or another, decided to try and "flee ...from the presence of God." He decided to flee to another area and could only get there by boat. Once on the boat, a horrible storm came. At one point the men on the boat began to ask Jonah if he knew the reason for such a horrible storm and Jonah told them that he was fleeing God's presence. He knew this was the reason for the storm!
He even told the men to throw him overboard and the storm would cease. And guess what...it did! From here is where the whale comes in. But, I want to stay focused on this intro.
Yes, Jonah was very courageous for not giving up on God while in his time of trouble (while in the belly of the whale), but how did he get there in the first place?
By not following God.
It wasn't in God's will for Jonah to get on that boat to go to that particular city. And what's more is that Jonah immediately realized that this "storm" came about because he wasn't following God's word to him (not to mention, he put the lives of the other men at risk).
Just after reading the first three verses of chapter one, the Holy Ghost revealed to me "this is why."
I think we fail to realize (and accept) that some storms and trials we face are results of our own actions or reactions. We are quick to blame Satan for everything that goes wrong...but, as my pastor from New York always said: "Everything ain't the devil; some of that stuff is you, baby!"
Wow. The heat of this revelation caused me to drop my Bible for just a second.
It's so easy to put our own wants and needs before God's requests, but it can also have its consequences. I don't know anyone (including myself) who hasn't been in this type of situation before!
But God is also giving me a great opportunity...He's allowing me to correct my mistakes before they're even made. He's showing me the road He wants me to take and how things can get if I choose not to.
There's so much more to be said...but I encourage you to read the Scriptures yourself and let God reveal His awesome power to you. Each person's situation is different, but God knows just what you need to hear.
1 comment:
First off, I wanted to thank you for commenting on my blog, and second...wow! What you have written has been a great encouragement to me, and very eye opening.
If it were alright with you, I would like to add you to my blog roll.
God bless!
Moriah
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