Skip to main content

Jonah 2:4

I said, 'I have been banished
from your sight;
yet I will look again
toward your holy temple.'
(NIV)
In Jonah's prayer we see repentance. He knows that his actions have brought him far out of relationship with God, but he is turning. He is looking again toward the dwelling of God. In the Old Testament times this turning of the face, or looking toward something had the idea of squaring the shoulders. He obviously wasn't really doing that because he was in the belly of a fish, but it had to do with the mind and the heart. Setting your face toward something was telling about your mindset. Jonah was set on God.

Where is your face set today? Are your shoulders set toward God? I need to be asking myself these questions today, not just in some things, but throughout the day. In everything we do, we need to look again toward God's holy temple.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Ephesians 4:31

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. (NIV) This verse might be best served with some definitions. Bitterness - Just what it says, bitterness. It is a bitter root that produces a bitter fruit. Rage - Usually translated as Wrath. It has to do with a passionate anger. This is the person who is fuming. They are bubbling over with anger. Anger - This word has also been translated as wrath. It is most definitely referring to the actions associated with anger. It doesn't have to mean this, but their can also be the association with violence. This is the person who is acting out on their anger, in a sinful way. Brawling - Ok, I just learned something new, this word has to do with making an outcry, or a crying. After I read the definitions, what immediately jumped into my mind was the person who yells when they are angry. He may not do something violent, but he is letting everyone know exactly how angry he is. He is a ye...

Jonah 2:10

And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. (NIV) Don't you just love fresh starts. They're not always fresh, but they are a start. The God that we serve is a God of fresh starts. My mind goes to the many times that Christ reached out his hand, pulling a lame man to his feet, and saying, "...now go and sin no more." Or the woman caught in adultery, "...neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more." Only a God of grace will allow a swallowed man to repent. Praise Him.

Psalm 136:4

to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever. (NIV) If this verse said, "to him who does great wonders..." it would still be a great verse. We could talk about all of the wonders that God does. Everything from the rings of Saturn and the Sombrero Galaxy to the forming of a child inside its mothers womb or even how electrons are spinning around the atoms and not flying off. We could talk about all of those things and marvel at His wonders. But get this, all of the great wonders are His! He doesn't just get credit for great wonders, He gets credit for all of them, because the verse says, "to him who alone does great wonders..." God has no counterpart. He has no arch-rival. There is none like Him, and He is the only one who is doing the wonderful stuff! He is the changer of hearts and lives. He is the redeemer. He is the savior. He is the God who hears and the God who sees. And the most wonderful of all, His love endures Forever!