Through the vomit

Read Jonah 1:17

There are only a few places in teh Bible where the Scripture talks about vomit. Jonah did not obey the Lord and so he found himself in the stomach of a fish. What is in the belly of a fish? VOMIT! Jonah said in his prayer that, seaweed wraped around his head. Being in the belly of a fish is messy stuff.

What might the vomit be for you? Attacks from the Devil. Problems of our own making. Attacks from people. Whatever the difficulty and whatever the cause, God has a way to bring you through the vomit of life.

God brought Jonah through the vomit. There ae three things that Jonah found on the other side of the vomit.

--Jonah found his God (2:7-10).
Through a painful situation God shook Jonah's life so that he would see God in a new way.
Pain made Jonah remember the Lord
Pain made Jonah repent to the Lord
Pain made Johan right with the Lord

Questions for Discussion and Reflection:
What is God trying to teach you in the pain that you are experiencing?

--Jonah found his calling (3:1-4).
Amazingly, God not only saved Jonah out of the storm, the sea and the fish, God called him again to work.
A Second Chance (3:1)
A Sacred Charge (3:2)
A Super Challenge (3:3-4) Later we learn that there were over 120,000 people to minister to in Niniveh!

Questions for Discussion and Reflection:
Is there a call from God or direction that he has given you that you think can never be realized? Does it seem too big? Do you feel to inadaquate?

--Jonah found his spiritual awakening (3:5-10).
A Revival for Everyone (3:5-6)
A Revival of Humility (3:6-8)
A Revival of Prayer (3:8)
A Revival of Repentance (3:8)
A Revival of Blessings (3:10)

Questions for Discussion and Reflection:
Do we really care about blessing others, or are we only concerned for ourselves? Later we find that Jonah did not want God to be compassionate to Nineveh (4:2). Are we looking for a spiritual experience that is marked by humility, prayer and turning from evil things, or one that is marked by our own desires and whims or an emotional thrill?

Often times we pass through very difficult things to reach where we are going. The key to making it through the vomit is having faith in the bad times. While still in the belly of the fish Jonah thanked God for saving him (2:9). Begin to look at your problems with faith in God and his Son Jesus Christ. Ask for his help and believe that he will help you whithout doubting him, then you will receive what you ask for in prayer.

Your Friend,

Pastor Paul