05/29/2026
May 28 Weekly Note,
It’s been a while since I read the book of Jonah, but a couple things struck me about the opening verses in the bible…note the direction words!
Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go
to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before
me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.
4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.”
– Jonah 1:1-6
When Jonah ran from the Lord he went down to Joppa, down into the ship, down into the inner part of the ship…and if that wasn’t enough Jonah had lain down and fallen asleep. I’m guessing it was probably a “deep” sleep!
Sometimes I feel the prompting of the Lord to do something that I really don’t want to do. And, like Jonah, when I go my own way it isn’t long before I find myself drowning on my own.
But like Jonah, we can call out to God and He is faithful:
5 The waters closed in over me to take my life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head. 6 To the roots of the mountains I went down, to the land whose bars closed upon me forever. Yet you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God.
- Jonah 2:5-6
Thank you God for being the God of resurrections – the God who redeems our life from the pit and who returns us to the solid rock of Jesus!
Regards,
Ken
