Welcome to the Whispering Willow.
I am Diana,
And you are listening to the third of four meditations on Jonah,
Where we have been reflecting on lessons we can learn from this story.
In the first lesson,
We looked at the reasons we run away from God.
The next day,
We talked about how God can use our mistakes.
Today's lesson is about second chances.
Get comfortable and join me for this brief meditation on the story of Jonah.
Whatever choices Jonah made,
God was always in control.
The fish provided Jonah with the time he needed to reflect on his choices and do the right thing.
Even though Jonah knew he had taken a bad path,
His prayer in Jonah 2 shows that he also knew he could turn to God for forgiveness and redemption.
Have you ever received a second chance?
Jonah's example shows that running from God inevitably turns into running back home again,
If we are willing.
Let's reflect on Jonah's prayer today.
From inside the fish,
Jonah prayed to the Lord,
His God.
He said,
In my distress I called to the Lord,
And he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead,
I called for help,
And you listened to my cry.
You hurled me into the depths,
Into the very heart of the seas,
And the currents swirled about me.
All your waves and breakers swept over me.
I said,
I have been banished from your sight,
Yet I will look again toward your holy temple.
The engulfing waters threatened me,
The deep surrounded me.
Seaweed was wrapped around my head.
To the roots of the mountains,
I sank down.
The earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you,
Lord,
My God,
Brought my life up from the pit.
When my life was ebbing away,
I remembered you,
Lord,
And my prayer rose to you,
To your holy temple.
Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God's love for them.
But I,
With shouts of grateful praise,
Will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good.
I will say salvation comes from the Lord.
And the Lord commanded the fish,
And it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Today,
I hope your mind keeps coming back to the idea that God is gracious and merciful with us in ways we cannot comprehend.
If you enjoyed this meditation,
Come back for the final lesson from the story of Jonah.
You
