Jonah and the God of Second ChancesSample

"And he said: ‘I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, and He answered me.'"—Jonah 2:2

Think about that verse for a second . . . Jonah knew God heard his prayer before the answer ever even came! Jonah was crying out in anguish and desperation from inside a giant fish, and yet before his request became reality, he still said, “and He answered me.” There are two things you should see here.  

1. God hears you.
2. God answers prayers.  

It’s that simple! Though it may not always seem like it, He does.

What’s crazy, though, is that Jonah spent three days in the belly of the fish before finally crying out. Not three minutes. Not three hours. THREE DAYS! You may be reading that and thinking to yourself, Seriously? What took him so long? Well, even though none of us have ever been swallowed by a whale, there are plenty of moments and seasons in life where we're consumed by a whale-sized sin, struggle, or stronghold, and we wait . . . and wait . . . and wait, and exhaust every other option before finally crying out to God. So, we can probably cut Jonah a little slack here. 

What was the endgame here? What was God's desired outcome? God wanted to bring Jonah to the place where he submitted and sought after God's heart and will for his life. And He wants the same for us. As we said yesterday, God wants to bring us to a place where we want what He wants, where our hearts are aligned to His. 

Jonah finally came to the realization that God was doing a work in his life.  In verse 3, he says, “For you cast me into the deep.” Not the sailors who literally threw him into the water, but God. So, now Jonah has spent three days in isolation, darkness, depression, hopelessness, and frustration, and then the light bulb turned on. Who is the answer to all these things? Who is the solution? Who can save me? God!

“When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD” (Jonah 2:7). Jonah finally reached the end of himself, which led him to God. And in verses 8 and 9, he committed himself to God. So, even after hearing a call from God to go to Nineveh, even after fleeing from God, even after a massive storm, being thrown into the water, swallowed by a fish, and spending three days in the fish, Jonah still had to do some soul searching. 

And now, we find out what it was that God wanted to do in his life: “So the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.” (Jonah 2:.10). This is where you have to trust that God hears and answers your prayers. You see, we don’t get a say in how He’ll do it; we just have to trust that He will. In Jonah’s case, he became the vomit of a giant fish. Isn’t that exciting?! But his deliverance only came after his soul-searching - his repentance. There’s more to it, though. He was vomited about 375 miles from Nineveh. Now, he had to truly walk in his repentance and deliverance. He couldn't just use God as a genie and then do as he pleased. God delivered him from the fish in order to accomplish the good purposes and plans He had for Jonah. And the same is true for us. Through Jesus, God delivers (saves) us with a plan and purpose for our lives. It may not look exactly like what you had envisioned, but you can trust that His plan for you and your life is infinitely greater, more satisfying, and more fulfilling than anything you could ever dream up for yourself. Now, we just have to walk in it!

Questions For Reflection

• When was the last time you truly cried out to God in your times of trouble?
• What deliverance do you need to walk in today?