The Jonah Lesson - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) September 12, 2023

Today, we take another look at Jonah's story. He was a servant of God who - and I wouldn't advise this - refused to do God's bidding. The result was that he was thrown off a ship and ended up in the mouth of a whale. However, when he repented for his stubbornness and praised God, the whale vomited him out. On the shoreline of the city he'd refused to go to, no less.

Although Jonah is a case study in God's patience and mercy for His servants, there is more to learn from His experience. He'd been sent to give the Kingdom of Nineveh a dire warning from the Lord - “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” (Jonah 3:4). Thankfully, the people of Nineveh took this message seriously. Their king instituted a fast with no food or water for every individual and all animals so as to stave off God's threatened wrath. God, in kind, acknowledged the kingdom's effort to honor Him and destruction did not come to Nineveh for at least another 150 years. All good, right?

Not as far as Jonah was concerned. He was upset that God hadn't wiped them off the map. In fact, he complained (and explained) that he hadn't wanted to come to Nineveh in the first place because he'd known God might forgive them (Jonah 4:2). Keep in mind that the Kingdom of Nineveh was his nation's archenemy.

And what was God's reaction to Jonah? He asked him this simple question in “Is it right for you to be angry?” (Jonah 4:4).

Ask yourself the same question, is it right to be angry when God extends mercy to your enemies? Those people who've done you wrong and seemingly without remorse?

God didn't think so. And he didn't think He should deprive kindness from the Ninevites especially after they sought His grace. And this is an important lesson to keep in mind - God can show mercy to anyone, especially if they seek His forgiveness, something others may never witness or hear about. As a matter of fact, you should be grateful God shows mercy to those who aren't at their best, after all, you are equally imperfect. Besides, if not for the Lord's grace and kindness toward us, where would you be?

The fact that God would show mercy to those you deem wicked shouldn't be a surprise because Jesus taught in Matthew 5:44 - But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

Be honest. That's a tough pill to swallow, correct? How do you love someone who's shown you nothing but misery and pain? How do you take the additional step of praying for them? The answer to this is to remember the example of Jesus Christ. He was spat on, insulted, and eventually crucified by people who hated him. Yet, what did He say as he hung on the cross dying? Luke 23:34 - Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. For His selflessness, Jesus was elevated to sit at the right hand of God.

It isn't easy to forgive the wicked. It is even harder to love them and pray for their good. However, God wouldn't have told us to do these things if it wasn't something He expected. And God might expect you to do this someday, just as His Son had to.

Will you be ready?

To learn more, please read the following related posts:

1. Jonah

2. Forgiveness

3. Repentance

4. On Grief & Freedom

Resist satan - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) September 8, 2023

Most of us are familiar with the instruction in James 4:7 - Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. How many of us, however, understand what it means to resist the devil? And if satan met us face to face, would you know what to do?

Our Savior, Jesus Christ, gives us a key example we can all emulate in the effort to set the devil aflight and keep it away. In Matthew 4:10, the Son of God said the following, "Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” Those words are a crucial weapon in every believer's arsenal. And when coupled with scripture, the devil has no comeback. Just as it did with Jesus, it will back off.

There's also Jude 1:9 - But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (NIV).

Another instance where the devil was pushed back was in Zechariah 3:2 - The angel of the LORD said to Satan, "May the LORD condemn you, Satan! May the LORD, who loves Jerusalem, condemn you. This man is like a stick snatched from the fire." (GNT).

Consider that same verse in a few other Bible versions -

But the LORD said, "Satan, you are wrong. Jerusalem is my chosen city, and this man was rescued like a stick from a flaming fire." (CEV).

The LORD said to Satan, "I, the LORD, silence you, Satan! I, the LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, silence you! Isn't this man like a burning log snatched from a fire?" (GWT).

Why is it important to know how to command the devil to back off? Because the devil is constantly attacking God's children and usually in ways they cannot readily recognize. Nevertheless, we have to be ready with God's word to rebuke satan each time it takes a step against us. And how does it do this? By whispering slick lies to us. You woke up inspired to do something and suddenly, a thought slips into your mind suggesting that your efforts won't count. That nothing you do will work. And suddenly, your enthusiasm dims. Or, it throws arrows to block a person's path in an attempt to keep them from succeeding. Their car breaks down. They lose their phone. The person they need to speak to is mysteriously absent or busy.

Whichever way the devil tries to attack, the children of God are well-armed to resist it and send it fleeing. He has given us scripture for this very reason. Our Father opened His mouth and spoke against satan. So must we. Jesus wasn't quiet when the devil repeatedly tried to tempt Him and we can't be either. We must pronounce the word of God and tell satan to back off. We must declare the word of God, just as Jesus did when He resisted the devil three times in the wilderness.

And there's something else we have to do. We must submit ourselves to God as James 4:7 states. We must therefore choose to live righteously, putting sin behind us in order to live the way God wants. It is the way we live our life that speaks the loudest in resisting the devil and causing it to flee. Let us take it one day at a time, trusting the Lord to build us up and make us deadly weapons for His earthly ministry who terrify hell itself. The Lord will help us because His plan is to turn us into vessels that give Him glory, IJN, Amen. Never forget, His glory rises upon us and we have authority in Christ. Hallelujah!

If you forgot about the numerous ways satan uses deceit to throw us off, now would be a good time to refresh your memory by reading the following,

1. Satan is a Destroyer

2. Satan's Lies, Insecurity & Self Reliance

3. Satan's Lies & Breaking Covenant

4. Satan's Lies & Rebellion

5. Satan's Lies about God

6. How satan speaks 1: Snake in the Garden

7. How satan speaks 2: Book of Job

8. How satan speaks 3: King Sennacherib

9. How satan speaks 4: Weaponized Truths & Truthful Lies

10. How satan speaks 5: Jezebel

11. Get Scrappy

Repentance - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) September 5, 2023

One of the greatest things about the Christian faith is that believers have access to unmerited grace. It is a grace that none deserve but has been made available to all who believe in Christ and proclaim His Father, Lord. This grace provides access to forgiveness even when we sin and fall short of God's glory (Romans 3:23).

And the way to receive such forgiveness and grace is to confess and repent for our sins. The Lord has promised to forgive all who do so. 1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

However, repentance is not the mere act of telling God, "oops, my bad. I messed up." In fact, saying "sorry" does not necessarily equate to repenting. True repentance is discussed by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:8 - Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God (NLT). This means whenever we truly repent for our sins we must start to live in a way that shows to the Lord that we have rejected the sin we confessed.

There is no question that doing this is not easy. Nevertheless, when we are confronted by our sinful ways and repent for them, we must do all we can to not continue the behavior. We do not want to be like the foolish person spoken of in Proverbs 26:11 - As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.

So how do we not return to our sin? How do we live like those who have truly repented?

It is crucial for us to confront our sins and the reasons why we commit them. Do we tend to gossip when around certain people or places, be they online or in person? Do we lie when under pressure? Do we use foul language when we're hungry and/or haven't slept? Do we fornicate when we haven't been spending time with the word of God? We need to be honest and keep track of the triggers that cause us to sin. We need to look at our lives with a critical eye and eliminate the people, behaviors, and other things that are common factors causing us not to please God.

Most importantly, we must call on God for help in identifying and removing the triggers that cause us to fall cheaply into satan's snare. The devil wants each of us to sin against God and it works hard to accomplish its mandate to steal, kill, and destroy lives (John 10:10). Our objective is to not be punked by satan. God is faithful to help us overcome the evil one. He is also invested in helping us not succumb to sinful thoughts and behaviors. It is therefore key to invite Him into the fight against sin, rely fully upon Him, and watch Him bring victory.

Finally, having acknowledged our sins, we must actually hate them. We can't expect God to help us with sinful behaviors that we don't want to get rid of. If we sugarcoat our iniquity, we won't want it gone and thus, we won't be able to truly repent. We can't ignore what God says is sin because the world says it isn't. Consider Romans 12:9 - Love is to be sincere and active [the real thing—without guile and hypocrisy]. Hate what is evil [detest all ungodliness, do not tolerate wickedness]; hold on tightly to what is good (AMP). Sin is evil and unrighteous and these are the things we are to HATE so we can truly turn away from them.

Be aware that we will make mistakes and sometimes, we will need to repent again. God is gracious and He sees our efforts to be better. Although that start and stop cycle may be discouraging, don't give up! Remember that nothing of value comes cheaply. Even Jesus had to resist satan more than once so expect to resist your sin more than once too. Yet, as long as you've tagged God into the match, be rest assured that He will help you overcome and live a life of true repentance to His glory.