Should I not have pity on Nineveh?

In my personal Bible study, I am making an attempt to look back on the stories of the Old Testament and see their relevance today in my life. There are so many stories that we learn when we are young, but miss the point entirely in our older years. We treat them as childish fables and move on. As I was studying this week, I began to rethink the situation of Jonah in relation to what expects of those who answer his call. It is in this call to Jonah that we can understand our search for our calling in life.

1. God placed a very specific calling before Jonah. Go to Nineveh (Jonah 1: 1). Time and again God tells Jonah where he wants him to go. Nineveh was described as a great city that had done terrible things against God.
2. Resistance to God’s call is impossible- Jonah tried to avoid the God’s demand. He ran away and boarded a boat for Tarshish to escape the presence of God. However, God had set this on Jonah, and would not let him escape this calling.
3. Jonah was seemingly proud of his calling- Jonah felt some weight from this call, and was not afraid to tell those around him why he was traveling (v 10).
4. The calling brought with it a sense of responsibility - Jonah was remorseful for the trouble that he cause the sailors because of his attempt to run, and offered to throw himself overboard (v 12).
5. Jonah nearly died because he did not answer God’s call- The prayer of Jonah described in Chapter 2 of the book provides some insight into the mind expanding experience of Jonah. What he describes here paints a picture of his own drowning but rejoices in being saved by God.
6. Jonah’s calling only required him to inform the people- Jonah followed out his calling to the letter. He was required to tell the people of Nineveh their sin, and the consequences of their actions. He did just that. No more, No Less.
7. Jonah found it difficult to have pity on the people of Nineveh- Jonah became bitter because God spared the people of the city, and began to grumble and complain about their salvation. God used a plant to show Jonah that if he could have pity on a plant, then God could have pity on Nineveh.

All these aspects sound similar to the calling of Christ. We have a specific calling that is inescapable to those we serve God, and we have the responsibility to bear witness to our calling in one way or another. For us, failure to answer the call of Christ results in death, but he finds a way to use our darkest times to bring us to that call. He only asks that we share the story of Christ, and understand that we do so out of pity on the lost souls of this world. Those who are a great city and are living against God need to hear that message of God, and maybe their story can turn out like Nineveh.

Forgotten?

Have you ever found yourself in a public place and met someone you knew from long ago? Did you remember their name? Did they remember yours? We all have a need within us to be remembered. We long to leave an impact that will affect generations to come. We long to be remembered. Sometimes in this life we enter into dark situations and we begin to question where God is?
Psalm 13

How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?How long must I take counsel in my souland have sorrow in my heart all the day?How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,lest my enemy say, "I have prevailed over him,"lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
But I have trusted in your steadfast love;my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the LORD,because he has dealt bountifully with me.

There are moments in this life when we feel completely and utterly forgotten. The emptiness that comes with that feeling only isolates us more, and drives us further into our own despair. The fact is that even during these times we forget that God is still there for us. However, we are so lost in our own self pity and loathing that we assume that he has left us as well. David felt this way when he was on the run from Saul. God is the source of all joy, all wisdom, all strength, and life itself, but David felt separated from Him because of his current situation. David ends by returning to a trust in God that reaffirms his faith and drives his fears away.
We need to take a page out of David’s book here. When life becomes dark and drear and we feel like God has turned his back on us, we must make the conscious effort to focus our minds back to His faithfulness. Overwhelming fear must be cast out by an overwhelming God. Just remember, the next time that you feel like God has turned his back on you that you don’t serve a God who is in the business of deserting people.

Time Together

I have to admit that Recharge (6-12th grade devotionals) is one of my favorite times to come together as a group. We spent last Tuesday night at the Dickson’s, and we had about 20 people in attendance in all. The aspect that I loved the most was that I see developing leaders among our youth and young adults who are becoming more confident in their own ability to lead. For many of us, we know that the first steps towards leading can be difficult and intimidating. While our youth are building leadership abilities, they are learning to reach out to those around us. One of the major joys of Recharge is that it provides a chance for young people to come together in an environment that is welcoming to outsiders, and is not a religious overload that scares them into making a decision about God in that moment.
Ultimately, Recharge is about spending time together with each other and God. Psalm 133 sums up the feeling and concept of Recharge:

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.”

The Psalmist describes the bondage of unity as an anointing and a blessing on those who are involved. The oil poured on the head of Aaron symbolizes the preparation that was needed for the high priest to come before God, and the psalmist is equating the concept of unity to preparation and glory before God.
This forces us to rethink our walk towards unity. It is a positive concept, but to realize that it is an expectation and a preparation to come before God forces to rethink our own approach to unity with each other and with those we come into contact with. Recharge provides our youth with that chance for unity with each other. What are we doing to maintain unity among the body to ensure that we are prepared and blessed before God?
Kyle

Locked out

As I write this very article, I find myself sitting on the back porch of my own home. I know it sounds a bit strange that I would just so happen to be relaxing on the back porch and think to write an article, but there is a bit more to the story than that. As I was preparing to leave for the office on Wednesday, I had gathered all my things and headed out of the house. When the door shut I knew immediately, I had left my keys inside. At this point, I was powerless. I did the only thing I knew to do and started calling out to people around me. I first called my father who has the only other key in existence to see if he was off work, and because he wasn’t I had to call my brother to come pick me up to go to the base. I then called Aunti Joan (who is probably chuckling the whole time she reads this) at the office to let her know that I’d be in late. If I wouldn’t have had the ability to call others then I never would have been as successful in getting back into the house, as I needed to be.
We all find ourselves outside of the House of God at some point. The cares and worries of the world can pull us out or tempt us to leave without the keys to get back in. So what are our keys to get back into the House of God?
Confession of Jesus as the Savior- Peter struggled with his own confession, and Jesus said the Church would be built on it (Matthew 16:18). However, Peter faltered in that confession not long after and denied his discipleship (John 18: 25-27). Confession shows an acceptance and acceptance leads to a willingness to follow.
If we are locked out, and want back in then we must reach out to those who are in the family of God. If we have someone reach out to us, then we must help him or her. Apollos erred from the truth and was gently guided back to the truth by Paul (Acts: 24-19:1). Paul goes on to say that we are to bear one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2). This requires that we are active in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and they want to re-establish that relationship with God.
It is easy to get locked out of the house sometimes. We get wrapped up in what we do and before we know it we can’t get back in. We need to be looking for those who have locked themselves out and help them get back in. For me, I’m off to pick up a spare set of keys.

Kyle