God gives Jonah a job to od -- the casting of pearls

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Date Posted: 12:11:19 09/18/08 Thu
Author: jennywren (love)
Subject: God gives Jonah a job to od

chapter 16 Jonah's Adventure
(By Jenny wren)

Jonah was the son of Amittai;
The word of the LORD came to Jonah and told him "to go
down into the Ninevah," Jonah did not say he would go,
He listened to the Lord's instructions and after the Lord
left him..

Jonah turns the opposite direction that day and heads out,
The lord is 'seeing' all of this, (God and Jonah, both know),
this can be leading to terrible concequences, if one makes
the wrong selection when the Lord is directing your way,
just as Jonah did that day,

Out of the two choices given to him Jonah had picked
wrongly. God had looked into Jonah's heart and
there he had seen the problem:
there in Jonah's breast lies; a stubborn heart,( making him
go against God , showing that follower a lesson )

. Jonah was unaware that he had an audience as he turns
and heads for Joppa, there he found a ship that was
going down to (his new destination) 'Tarshish,' just
Jonah's luck, the boat was just about loaded, and
near ready for leaving,......... bound for their port.

After paying his fare, Jonah goes aboard, and
settleing himself for the trip, the sails were lifted
amidst a lot of clatter, and noisy sailors. soon Jonah
was sailing away in the opposite direction from Ninevah,
he was now headed for Tarshish, Yes,Jonah was running from
the Lord,

Jonah was just about asleep in his new journey,
resting in his soul, when one of the most terrible
storms, He had ever heard or seen on those seas
came squalling in, covering the boat, rocking it
to and fro, making everyone sick to their stomach ,
even seasoned sailors, hung over the sides of
the boat ini their vomiting,.

All the sailors were so afraid and each cried out to
their own god, .that seemed to be a useless attempt
at saving their hides. The ship was heavy with it's
cargo and almost capsized a couple times making
them know that; they had to get rid of some of
the cargo, or sink, still the storm rages on, there
the sailors fight a storm in futile attempt, starting to throw
cargo into the sea to lighten-up the almost sinking
ship, they had needed more buoyancy,.it helped some, but not enough to drive away their fear. the sailors then look for other stuff ,they could toss overboard. they were so afraid that their ship would sink, the sailors praying and were all

a scatter in futile attempts as...
Jonah was unaware as he lay asleep below deck,
where he laid down earlier ,He had fallen into a deep, deep sleep.

.Then the sailors (who were a very suspiscious lot)
had said to each other, "Come, we will cast lots to
find out who is held responsible for this terrible
storm,? prayers have not worked, we have cast
excess cargo over-boardstill their ship was about
to wreck "there must be a jinx . riding on our ship,."
they had then, started to cry out ..

They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah, it must have
been a surprised Jonah that went from a sleep just
minutes before., there he was floundering in the briny
deep, they had thrown him overboard, the raging sea
just as suddenly as the storm had sprung up, had then
grew calm.

But the LORD (who always keeps a watchful Lord over his
children, even when they disobey) God had provided for that situation also, God had created a great fish to swallow Jonah, It is was then a very surprised Jonah who came ot his senses, inside that great fish

There Jonah had lived for three days and three nights,
the most horrible days and longest nights, of his life,
there amidst all of the sea clutter and rotten mess
inside of the foul, putrid, odor of digestive fish inside
of the stomach of that monsterous fish ..
Jonah thought that each breath would be his last,
"Lord, Am I to die like this?" He cried ,:"Oh Lord
I wish I had that to do all over, I would surely go to Ninevah and I sure would have warned them people for you."

Then Jonah, just knowing he was going to die, started
to beg the Lord for forgivness, for his many sins, ( Even
for the ones he thought the lord could not have possibly

known about,) confession is good for the soul,
even inside of a big fish..Then suddenly in a fit of vomiting, that big fish flings its
stomaches contents out on the shore, Jonah and all of
the rotten fish and seaweek covered him in one putrid
mess. (good thing that calmed sea was at last, then for
a quick sea-bath, Jonah crawled from the sea, now cleaned
but still smelly Jonah, ("Clean inside and out", thought
God to himself )

Once again, God called Jonah "Are you going toNinevah
and warn the people now, for me, "God wanted Jonah to tell
them, " what was about to take place with them,' if' they
did not change their evil ways, go and proclaim this
message to them...."

Jonah was quick to answer that time, "When do you
want me to start,.... now, ?,Lord, ---------------I am
ready Lord ,for anything! Anything you want me to
do for you ! ...yes, I am ready!"
"Go to that great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it
the message that I gave you" came the direction from the
Lord, to Jonah

Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD, and off he went
to Nineveh, truly glad to be alive..

The fame of Ninevah as a large and evil city, would
take some heavy preaching to get into the hearts of the
wicked people,who lived there then,

It took Jonah three days, on the first day, when he
finally got ot the city , He shouts ,drawing attention
to himself and then people truly listened as Jonah
warned them of impending harm that would come to all
of them, because of sin, He warned "Forty more days
and Nineveh will be overturned and lost forever, if
you do not change. God has sent me to warn you,"
believe me, Jonah called of God, who 'can and will'
destroy you !," just as he said "unless you repent
of your evil ways,"

The Ninevites believed God. They quickly went from
house to house, warning the people themselves,
warning others " to fast and to pray, declare a fast,
and all of them, from the biggest among you to the
least, put on sackcloth ", which they gladly had done.,

When the news got to the king of Nineveh, he
stood up from his throne, took off his royal robes,
then proceded to cover himself with sackcloth, then
he also, sat down in the dust. but only after he
had given orders to the people of Nineveh:

the king declared to all of his people :
" Do not let anyone,man or beast, herd or flock,
not even taste anything; do not let them eat or
drink.

But be covered with sackcloth. everyone of you must
call urgently telling God. "We will give up our evil ways
and we will fight no more, "then he added
"Who knows? God may look upon us with his compassionate eye, if we do this knowing that;

we truly mean it, He just might not turn his
fierce anger loose upon us after all,"

the king'smen warned ;"Save us, save yourself, people pray for
forgivness and mean it." and they honestly did.
God was listening .....................

Now, when God seen what they did promise,and
how they turned from their wicked ways, he felt
sorry for all of them and did not bring upon them
the terrible destruction he had threatened them with...

Now when Jonah seen how the Lord was forgiving
the people , Jonah was truly upset at God and and
then he showed his anger that was inside of him,.

He prayed " LORD, O- LORD, is this not, just exactly
what I told you ?, way back there? that you would
do?, if I come over here in the first place ?,
remember that Lord?,

but you still said "Go Jonah, and warn the people
to stop sinning. "

Jonah was by then disgusted,, and mad as a wet hen,.
because everything turned out, just like he had
predicted it would,

He was still arguing with the lord,."SEE?, this is
'just' what I said, when I was still at home?
now Lord ,that thing right there,'That' is why
I took off ot Tarshish."

Jonah was thinking of the past few days and all of
the mess he has been in,He was still fussing about
the situation,

"I just 'knew' that you Lord, have been good and kind
and felt sorry for people, my God, I know also,that
you are slow to get mad, and I also know that you
just bubble over in love, why ,you are the God who;
stops short of sending any kind of trouble to anyone,
Now, LORD, I want you to go ahead ,"

Jonah ,gulps as he finished the sentence,
"NOW I wish for you to just take away my life, it is
better for me to die, right here and now, than it is
for me to live and you know it,."

Then the Lord scolded Jonah,
"You sir, Jonah, you just tell me, what right do
you Have to be angry at me for 'this happening',?"

Jonah, curled his lip into a snide look and then he sat
down in an area, that was just east of the city. There
he made himself a make-shift shelter, sat down
inside of it's shade, looking out, and just waiting
to see what was going to happen as he looked over
the city.

The LORD God had placed a big climbing vine.
that He had created it grew fast, covering up
Jonah's head to give shade, to ease his hot brow
that was heated by Jonah's temper and the sun,,

Jonah seemed happy about that covering vine,
he even fell asleep in it's shade, at dawn the next
day., God placed a worm, which chewed through
the vine, so that it withered and died,

When the sun arose, God decided to create His
scorching hot east wind, there the sun is blazing
on Jonah's head soon Jonah grew dizzy from the
heat.

Jonah felt so sick he wanted to die, he was nodding
his head, as if to agree with himself and there he
reassured this feeling to his God, as he
(feeling sorry for himself)
told the Lord, , "It would be better for me to die, than
to live." Jonah was there filled to the brim and overflowed
with his disgust...........

But God questioned Jonah, "What right do you
have to be angry about the vine?"

"I do," he had said. "I am mad enough to die."
But the LORD spoke, "You are mad about this vine,?
because it died,.? even though you did not tend it,
or make it grow.? It grew up here overnight and died
overnight. and You Jonah are mad at that one, old vine
dying, Jonah think, there are more than a hundred and
twenty thousand people in Ninevah as you sit here today,
, they do not know right from wrong,, plus all of the many
animals as well. Should I God , not even be concerned

about the lives of all of them? do you want me to; not be
concerned about that great city and all it holds,(while you
fuss over 'one' vine) "Jonah !"scolded God at his child.
think Jonah...... what does that good heart that I gave to you, tell you.?.............?"

Suddenly the blinders fell from Jonah's eyes and
he could finally see what God was talking about,
How could he have been so disgusted over a dead
vine,? that God had made for own pleasure, ?

sent by God and all of them little children and
the grownups in the city that God had decided
to save, instead of killing them and Jonah feels
shame for his behavoir,before the Lord...................................
--------------------------------
Copyright 2006 jennywren

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