Scripture: Jonah 1:4-5 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 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.
Devotion: As we enter today’s verses, you might recall that the Lord told Jonah to go preach against the wickedness that was happening in Nineveh. Jonah promptly replied, “No, thanks” and boarded a boat headed in the opposite direction toward Tarshish.
Like trying to outrun your own shadow, Jonah tried to run away from the will of God and His sovereignty. As it turns out, God is still sovereign in Tarshish (shocker)! Jonah, as we will see in the coming days, did not outrun God. Even the darkness in his own heart, not wanting to extend the grace and mercy of God to those who lived in Nineveh, was not enough to separate him from the will of God. Psalm 139:7-8 sums this up well when it says, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”
The same is true for you and me. There is no amount sin, darkness, or running away that can separate us from the love and grace of Christ Jesus. No matter where we go or what we do, God will meet us there. In the midst of it all, in the lowest valley or on the highest mountain, the Lord is there with us. I don’t know about you, but that is such a beautiful reminder to me. Yes, I want to pursue God and honor Him in every area of my life. But I also recognize that I will not do that perfectly (or even close). And to know that God is with me through all of that, He will never leave me or forsake me, and that He still has good plans for my life? That gives me all the peace in the world. I pray it does the same for you.
Reflect:
- What season of life are you in/going through right now? How can you change your perspective to recognize that God is with you in this very season?