The Wednesday Word 9.13.2023

 

Jonah 2:1-10 NLT

2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from inside the fish. 2 He said,

“I cried out to the Lord in my great trouble, and he answered me. I called to you from the land of the dead, and Lord, you heard me! 3 You threw me into the ocean depths, and I sank down to the heart of the sea. The mighty waters engulfed me; I was buried beneath your wild and stormy waves. 4 Then I said, ‘O Lord, you have driven me from your presence. Yet I will look once more toward your holy Temple.’ 5 “I sank beneath the waves, and the waters closed over me. Seaweed wrapped itself around my head. 6  I sank down to the very roots of the mountains. I was imprisoned in the earth, whose gates lock shut forever. But you, O Lord my God, snatched me from the jaws of death!7 As my life was slipping away, I remembered the Lord. And my earnest prayer went out to you in your holy Temple. 8 Those who worship false gods turn their backs on all God’s mercies.9 But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.” 10 Then the Lord ordered the fish to spit Jonah out onto the beach.

 

We are not privy to the plans God has for our lives. We can’t even be certain about what our own choices will be as we travel through this life. For example, do you think I ever imagined that I would be writing a weekly snippet of a devotion when I began to attend church regularly twenty-some years ago? Never in a million years! Jonah probably never imagined that God would tap him to preach to Nineveh, but he did. A reluctant Jonah actually thought he could outrun God, but he couldn’t. What Jonah remembered, when all was lost, was that when you know God you are never lost. No matter the severity of the situation, God will still be God. Acknowledge your missteps and shortcomings. Trust in his love and mercy. Praise him above all else. Your “salvation comes from the Lord alone”…something to pray about.

 

Don’t forget to look for the Lord today. Vicki H.





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