The prophet Jonah gets a clear call from God… and he runs. In fact, Jonah sprints away from God and the task God has given him. When we read the story as spectators, we easily see how foolish Jonah is. However, when we enter into the story as participants, we see ourselves Running From Grace like Jonah. What does running look like today for us? How can we turn back? Most importantly, how does God’s Unrelenting Grace respond when his children run?
Jonah is a timeless story of God’s Unrelenting Grace. Jonah is not a typical prophetic book, and that’s why Jonah’s story is one of the most well-known stories in the Bible… at least the storybook version of Jonah and the Whale. Jonah is less about prophetic words and more about story, and it’s a story that draws us in and acts like a mirror for us. We’re going to spend 6 weeks going through the short book of Jonah, and it all begins with a word from the Lord to Jonah – a word which Jonah very dramatically rejects. As we look in the Jonah mirror, we’ll start by looking at what a word from the Lord sounds like when God speaks to us.
Uncertainty. That word can fill us with anxiety. You may be going through a rough time and wonder what's going to happen to you. You've been in waiting mode for what seems like forever. Will this waiting ever come to an end? We're on the cusp of a new year. What's going to happen in 2024? No one knows what's going to happen in the future, but uncertainty gives us another chance to trust in God and renew our commitment to Him. He is our Father who is familiar with us and knows what we need before we even ask it.
This Sunday, New Year's Eve, we will look at the opportunity of uncertainty and see what God tells us about trusting Him when we can't see around the corner.
Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords, but do we know what that means for us? Is that how we actually worship Jesus? King of kings and Lord of lords is a title for Jesus that highlights his power and might over everything, especially in his final victory over every powerful enemy of the kingdom of God. In this Advent season of anticipation, may our hearts be kindled with eager expectation for the coming King of kings and Lord of lords!
“Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” This is what Isaiah prophesied Jesus would be, and it is all true. Sometimes, though, even as we call Jesus our Prince of Peace, our lives (or world!) don’t’ look like a kingdom of peace. What kind of peace does Jesus bring, and how can we experience it?