Jonah 1:17
"Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights."
God's provision does not always come wrapped in our preferences. Jonah is a perfect example of this truth.
First off, the Lord provides Jonah with a fish to save him from drowning in his disobedience. Jonah finds lodging in the fish for three days and three nights.
God eventually delivers Jonah out of the fish and sends him to Nineveh, where He uses him to give the Assyrians a second chance. Jonah doesn't like it, because in his view, the Assyrians do not deserve the grace of God. So after preaching, Jonah decides to go outside the city and watch from a distance. He's hot, he's mad, and he's not in the mood to celebrate the miracle of repentance.
Now Jonah is sitting under a shelter he made, and God does something interesting. God provides a leafy plant and makes it grow up over Jonah's head to give shade.
But because the Lord knows that Jonah is more focused on the plant than His purpose, He takes the plant away. Which leads to the third thing the Bible says God provided — a worm to eat the plant that Jonah was so happy about.
The worm made Jonah furious. Yet the Bible says that God didn't just send a worm to destroy the plant that was shielding Jonah from the sun. He also provided the fourth thing: a wind to ensure that Jonah had to run for shelter — back into the city of Nineveh. God was working to bring Jonah to the end of himself — and into his purpose.
And the book of Jonah categorizes all of these elements: the whale, the plant, the worm, and the wind… as provision.
I'm sure it didn't seem like provision at the time. But when the story was finally recorded in the pages of scripture, the worm and the wind that probably seemed like punishment at the time turned out to all be part of God's provision, serving His purpose.
The reality is, only through the perspective of reflection can we see that today's misery might be tomorrow's provision. If you can begin to see the trials in your life through the lens of a God who loves you, you will see that both the whale and the worm are working together to serve a purpose in your life.
I know that there's nothing beautiful about the worm when it's chewing through your shady plant. But you have to remember that the God who delivered you — the God of the whale — is also the God of the worm, and He promises to work all things together for your good! (Romans 8:28)
Written By: Pastor Steven Furtick
"Now the LORD provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights."
God's provision does not always come wrapped in our preferences. Jonah is a perfect example of this truth.
First off, the Lord provides Jonah with a fish to save him from drowning in his disobedience. Jonah finds lodging in the fish for three days and three nights.
God eventually delivers Jonah out of the fish and sends him to Nineveh, where He uses him to give the Assyrians a second chance. Jonah doesn't like it, because in his view, the Assyrians do not deserve the grace of God. So after preaching, Jonah decides to go outside the city and watch from a distance. He's hot, he's mad, and he's not in the mood to celebrate the miracle of repentance.
Now Jonah is sitting under a shelter he made, and God does something interesting. God provides a leafy plant and makes it grow up over Jonah's head to give shade.
But because the Lord knows that Jonah is more focused on the plant than His purpose, He takes the plant away. Which leads to the third thing the Bible says God provided — a worm to eat the plant that Jonah was so happy about.
The worm made Jonah furious. Yet the Bible says that God didn't just send a worm to destroy the plant that was shielding Jonah from the sun. He also provided the fourth thing: a wind to ensure that Jonah had to run for shelter — back into the city of Nineveh. God was working to bring Jonah to the end of himself — and into his purpose.
And the book of Jonah categorizes all of these elements: the whale, the plant, the worm, and the wind… as provision.
I'm sure it didn't seem like provision at the time. But when the story was finally recorded in the pages of scripture, the worm and the wind that probably seemed like punishment at the time turned out to all be part of God's provision, serving His purpose.
The reality is, only through the perspective of reflection can we see that today's misery might be tomorrow's provision. If you can begin to see the trials in your life through the lens of a God who loves you, you will see that both the whale and the worm are working together to serve a purpose in your life.
I know that there's nothing beautiful about the worm when it's chewing through your shady plant. But you have to remember that the God who delivered you — the God of the whale — is also the God of the worm, and He promises to work all things together for your good! (Romans 8:28)
Written By: Pastor Steven Furtick
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