GodandMe2theMax

You want me to go where? Practical lessons from Jonah Chapter One...

Jonah 1
1) The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai:
2) "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me, "
3) But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.  He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port.  After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.
4) Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.
5) All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god.  And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.  But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
6) The captain went to him and said, "How can you sleep?  Get up and call on your god!  Maybe he will take notice of us and we will not perish."
7) Then the sailors said to each other, "Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity."  They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.
8) So the asked him, "Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us?  What do you do?  Where do you come from?  What is your country?  From what people are you?"
9) He answered, "I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land."
10) This terrified them and they asked, "What have you done?" (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
11) The sea was getting rougher and rougher.  So they asked him, "What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?"
12) "Pick me up and throw me into the sea," he replied, "and it will become calm.  I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you."
13) Instead, the mend did their best to row back to land.  But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.
14) Then they cried to the Lord, "O Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man's life.  Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for You, O Lord, have done as you pleased."
15) Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.
16) At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to Him.
17) But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.

"You want me to go where, God?  To Nineveh?"  Jonah probably thought this was all a big dream...a nightmare, even.  Nineveh was the capital city in the Assyrian Empire, and Assyria was filled with the kind of people that were easy to hate.  Yet, God's mercy is not prejudiced.  Nineveh's residents were sinful, wicked, and selfish, but God loved them just as much as He loves you and me.

I guess Jonah had some issues.  First, he was jaded.  He had a hatred for a particular people group, and he judged them without knowing them as individuals.  (Sound familiar, even with Christians today?)  And when God said to go, he went alright...in the opposite direction to Tarshish.  He boarded a ship and laid low.  (How could he think God wouldn't find him?)

Think about the irony.  Jonah is a prophet and God calls him to go preach repentance to Nineveh.  Instead, he runs to Joppa and hangs out sleeping in the bottom of the boat, seemingly hiding from God.  How can a prophet get to that point where he actually thinks he can hide from God?  Jonah knew he was not in line with what God wanted him to do.  His actions were outright blatant sin.  In fact, if I was running from God, I would hope I wouldn't be stupid enough to tell everyone why I was there.  Yet Jonah 1:10 tells us that Jonah did just that.

Think about times in your life when God has clearly told you something.  Maybe He's called you to full time ministry.  Maybe He's shown you that you need to be involved in an area of service.  Maybe He's asked for a commitment from you.  What are you doing now?  Have you run like Jonah?  Are you laying low and hiding out?

What about today's modern day prophets and preachers?  My heart is heavy thinking about great men of God who have fallen away, due to sin in their lives.  In doing so, they not only destroy their reputation, but they destroy the reputation of Christ.  Sin is powerful.  It creeps into our lives and takes residence, sometimes without us even being aware of it.  The more comfortable we become with sin, the easier it is to ignore it.  Soon, we come to think there's nothing wrong with a little dabbling in it.  Our hearts become cold toward the things of God, and we become self-focused instead of God-focused.  Worse yet, we ignore the sin altogether.  We keep "serving God" and ignore completely the elephant in the room. 

Having daily times of confession and soul searching is so important.  I'm sure Jonah didn't think he was such a bad guy for not loving the Assyrians.  It's like if Osama Bin Laden walked into our church and said he wanted to be saved.  Would it be so easy to share the love of Christ with him and embrace him with God's love?  That's what the Assyrian Empire was to Jonah.  His people had experienced atrocities from them.  The last thing he thought was fair and just was for them to come to repentance.  Yet, if Jonah was examining his heart, I would imagine God would have shown him his pride and selfishness.

Can you imagine the guilt Jonah had?  He knew the storm was his fault, yet he didn't speak up until the sailors cast lots to see who was to blame.  Then Jonah fessed up.  You see, it's never too late to come clean with God.  We can be in the midst of an unbelievable storm, but acknowledging God and His plan is always best.  When Jonah told the sailors to throw him overboard, they didn't want to.  Instead, they rowed harder toward land.  But when they saw their efforts were futile, they reluctantly threw Jonah overboard, and asked God to not hold them accountable for killing an innocent man. 

The Bible says in Jonah 1:16 that this experience caused these sailors to turn toward the one true God.  Jonah 1:16 says "At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to Him."  In Almighty God fashion, God brought good out of sin.  Jonah's disobedience caused everyone around him to be in harm's way.  But when Jonah had a change of heart and took responsibility for his actions, the sailors came to the Lord and worshiped Him.

Just like Jonah, our sin can bring harm to the innocent bystanders around us, but God can bring calm in the storm.  And in a seemingly impossible way, God can bring us out of the storm unscathed.  OK, we don't really know if Jonah had any scratches or bruises, but he was alive in the belly of a great fish, and that was a miracle. 

I think of my own life, times where my priorities weren't right, times where I could have very easily gone the opposite direction.  Times where I did.  Yet I can look back and see how God loved me so much that He had prepared a way for me, like Jonah, to sit and think about my situation in the belly of a fish.  Darkness.  Dirt.  Slime.  Stench.  Dried out skin from the salt.  Me and God.  God and Me.  Solitude.  Loneliness. 

Have you ever been there, too?  Just remember, if you're in the belly of the fish, stinky and disgusting, you're not alone.  God is right there with you.  Once you've committed your life to Him, He holds on to you with super-glue.  You can't run away from him, try you might.  Take time while you're there to examine yourself and pray.  Ask God to show you sin in your life.  It may be three days, it may be longer, but eventually, God will allow you to be spit out on dry land to serve Him again.

You want me to go where?  You want me to do what?  Why am I here in the darkness?  Honesty with God.  Confronting sin.  Repentance.  The story of Jonah is filled with practical applications...and I've only covered chapter one. 

What about you?  What is God telling you to do?  Where is he telling you to go?  Did He place a call on your life and you're running in the opposite direction?  Is sin in your life keeping you from obeying?  Are you in a storm of life?  Do you feel like you're in solitary confinement? 

I hope the next time God tells me something, I can take a lesson from Jonah.  I hope I will just trust in His perfect plan and obey.  Hopefully I won't ask, "You want me to go where?"

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Compassion = a Call to Action

Think about the most compassionate person you have ever known?  What was it about them that makes you think they possess this trait?  I would venture to guess that you've labeled them that way because they have outwardly shown love to you when they didn't have to do a thing.

Today, the world says 'compassion' is a deep awareness or sympathy for other's troubles.  Many times, that's where we leave it.  We feel bad for a friend or a particular situation; we have a 'pang' in our heart over what we've heard; we may even shed a tear.  But compassion is more than just empathy over a situation.  I believe compassion is a call to action.  Compassion is being moved to the point that you actively want to alleviate another person's suffering.  Jesus demonstrated compassion over and over...He wanted to alleviate people's spiritual, physical, and emotional suffering.  He didn't just feel bad for them - He did something about it. 

In the parallel chapters of Matthew 14:14 and Mark 6:34, I read the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand.  Matthew says He had compassion and healed the sick.  Mark says He had compassion and started teaching them many things.  The bottom line is that Jesus had compassion, then He went into action. 

Philippians 2:5 (NIV) says "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus."  Another version (KJV) says, "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus."  It's a command...compassion is a character trait of Christ; therefore, it should be one for me, too. 

This morning I've been trying to grasp my mind around this whole compassion thing.  Prior to this morning, I always thought the people who show the most compassion to others are the ones who have the spiritual gift of mercy.  Now, it may come a little easier fo those people, but that doesn't give me an 'out.'  You see, when I've done some spiritual gifts assessments, "mercy" is dead last on the list.  It doesn't come naturally for me.  (Maybe you should say a prayer for my children, because it is dead last on my husband's list, too!)  But this morning the Lord is showing me that compassion with action is what He expects of me, even though it doesn't come as easily as other Godly characteristics.  If it's a character quality of His, then it should be mine too.

So, if mercy and compassion don't come easily to me, how can I obtain this quality and put it into action?  I can't do it on my own; that's for sure.  2 Corinthians 1:3 says "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."  As my relationship with God grows, God, the Father of compassion, comforts me as I go through difficult situations.  I can then speak of His faithfulness to others to help encourage them.  He comforts me.  I comfort others.  It's circular, and it starts with me pursuing Him. 

For me, this morning God is speaking to me to be more aware of situations as they arise.  He's telling me that being empathetic is not what He expects of me.  I can't use "I don't have much mercy" as an excuse any longer.  No, empathy is not what God expects.  I need to have compassion...and it's not Biblical compassion until it turns into action.

Action Step on Compassion from 24-7Discipleship.com:

Think about the last time you were filled with compassion - a movement of care and concern deep within you that resulted in a merciful action on your part.  When was that?  Was it within the last month?  Having compassion doesn't mean that we can or even should fix every problem we encounter, but it should prompt us to pray, give encouragement, or respond tangibly as the Lord leads.  Now, on a scale of 1-5, how compassionate would you rate yorself?  If your score is poor, pray about this and consider ways for you to encounter first-hand the real-life difficulties of others.

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Choker with Biblical Charms...we all should wear one

Proverbs 3:3  "Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart."

I have read this verse countless times, but this morning I had a visual image of a necklace with charms on it.  Most of the time, charms are added to a bracelet or necklace because they are meaningful to the person wearing it.  They want everyone to know that these "charms" are important to them.  Think about it.  What kind of charms do we see on necklaces?  A cross.  A picture of a child.  Usually the charm we see is something beautiful.

So as I started to really study this verse and focus on it, I turned to other versions of the Bible to see how they translated the original text.  I was shocked when I found the comparisons.  The New International Version uses "love and faithfulness."  The New American Standard Version uses "kindness and truth."  The King James & New King James Version use "mercy and truth."  The New Living uses "loyalty and kindness."  That's quite the interesting difference in all those versions, isn't it?

Now, I am not a Bible scholar, and even though I've tried to do some research, I am highly unqualified to figure out the differences and which set of terms is most accurate.  But I think I do understand what God is trying to tell me through this verse.  There's two main things - the actions on the outside (bind them around your neck) and the attitude on the inside (write them on the tablet of your heart.)

These are all attributes of God, and outwardly, I need to have a 'charm' in my necklace for each of them.  Solomon says to 'bind them around your neck.'  I have a scar around the crease of my neck from my two cancer surgeries.  Most people can't even see it, but I know it's there.  So by choice, most of my necklaces are 'chokers.'  I think there's a reason they call it that.  After wearing one for a whole day, I feel like I've been strangled and need to get it off, in a quick way.  I can remember almost that feeling of panic when I can't get it off quick enough!  When you 'bind' something, you tie it up, right?  So if I am binding love, faithfulness, kindness, mercy, truth, and loyalty to my neck, I am outwardly adorning these things like charms on my choker, for others to see...and I can't take them off! 

Solomon reminds me that I may need to outwardly adorn these things, but they also need to inwardly govern me.  He says to write them on the tablet of my heart.  What happens when you have an emotional catharsis, good or bad?  It's indelibly written on your heart.  I was a young child the day I got saved, but I remember it very well.  It's written in my heart.  I remember the day my husband told me he loved me for the first time.  Why?  It was such a special time, and it's now forever written on my heart.  God expects my inward emotions and attitude to match what is on the outside.  He expects me to learn Spiritual lessons and not forget them.

I think about my kids.  Have you ever said, "How many times have I told you...?"  Countless.  Later in Provers 6:21, Solomon uses the same analogy.  He says to keep your father's commands and your mother's teachings.  Bind them on your heart forever; fasten them around your neck.  It's the same thing with our children.  We expect them to learn and remember and put into action what we tell them to do.  God, my Heavenly Father, expects the same of me.  I wonder how many times He looks at me and says, "How many times have I told you...?" 

I've never been a big fan of guys wearing jewelry, especially chokers and charm bracelets.  But I guess in this sense, it's what God calls them to do.  I want to wear love, faithfulness, kindness, truth. mercy and loyalty together with my friends, guys and girls, proudly.  I want to put into action these things God clearly tells me to have on the outside...and have the matching attitude in my heart on the inside.  Charm anyone?

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Monday Memory Verse, Lamentations 3:22-24

For the last few Mondays, I've been posting a verse I'm committing to memory for the week.  God showed me that I needed to be more active in learning His word.  I haven't heard from any of my friends on this topic...are you learning with me?  I'm thinking you can't go wrong in memorizing the Bible, and I can sure use the encouragement of having a partner learn God's word with me!

This week God directed me to 3 verses, lumped together.

Lamentations 3:22-24  Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness!  I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him!"

To really understand the context of verse 22, I think you have to read the whole chapter.  Jeremiah saw a ray of hope in all the sin and sorrow around him.  He said "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail."  Consumed.  I want to be consumed by God, but I'm thankful God doesn't consume me in the context this is talking about!  Because of His great love, there is no sin in my life that He will not forgive.  His love and mercy is greater than my sin.  And He chooses to forgive me time and time again instead of consuming me! 

They are new every morning...  How can God's mercy and faithfulness be new every morning?  The only way I can see it personally is if I'm having time with Him every morning.  Sure, they may be new, but how am I to know about it unless I personally experience it, every single day.  Each day not spent with God is a missed opportunity to see his faithfulness new and fresh. 

Great is your faithfulness...  I can't think of this phrase without thinking of the words to the old classic hymn. 

Great is Thy faithfulness!  Great is Thy faithfulness!  Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided; great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! 

Then I especially love the last part of one of the verses..it says:  strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Sometimes God lets us go through deserts of life.  We lose a job.  We lose a loved one.  We lose what we hold most dearest to us.  But in the deserts of life, you gotta remember that cactuses grow.  Sure, they're prickly and thorny on the outside, but on the inside, they have deep roots to soak up the water.  They endure the heat, yet they keep growing.  Somehow, they are able to soak up the water that is available to them, and they keep on growing!  How I want to be like a cactus and soak up the Living Water in the desert of life!

God is faithful - all the time - through the good and the bad.  I know this to be true.  If you were honest with yourself, you would admit it, too, even though it doesn't always feel like it.  Webster defines faithfulness as steadfast in affection or allegiance; firm in adherence to promises; given with strong assurance; binding.  That sure describes the God I know.  How about you?  He gives us exactly what we need, when we need it.  He never lies, and He never changes.  God gives us strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow!

The Lord is my portion, therefore will I wait for Him...  Now that's a tough one to say is true in my life.  Is Christ all I need?  Sure, the answer is yes.  But do I really live it and believe it?  That really puts life and my earthly wants/needs/greeds into perspective.  Sometimes it's easy to forget that God is all I need.  Sometimes it's easy to jump ahead of Him and His will out of panic from circumstances. But Jeremiah says he will wait for Him.  The KJV says "therefore will I hope in Him!"

I love Psalm 73:25-26  "Who do I have in heaven but You, God?  And there is none upon earth that I desire but You.  My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."  What a dynamic duo - God is my strength and my helping!

I'm challenged today to remember God's faithfulness and see how his compassions and mercies are new every morning.  I'm convicted that I need to allow Him to be my portion...my helping...to wait patiently for Him.  He really is all I need...sometimes I just need a slap in the face to remember that!

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com