MIRROR MIRROR

At the beginning we see Jonah getting called upon by God to go to Nineveh this great city in which the Bible says “whose wickedness has come before me” Jon 1:1–2.. Jonah doesn’t actually respond to God, in fact he literally runs away. The Bible says that Jonah found a ship heading to Tarshish, so he “paid the fare.” So here Jonah has a couple of chances before he boarded that ship to decide to walk back to God but instead goes down into the bottom of the ship.

Why is this important? Jonah does what every single one of us has done at one point in time or another. We retreated to the bottom. Jesus fell asleep in the ship because he had the upmost faith in his father that no harm would come to him, we often retreat to the bottom because we lack the faith in the Father . We retreat because we can see the danger that is all around us and if we shrink back to where we cant see the storm than we can avoid it right? What I noticed is that often when we have moments where we lack faith we are met with equally qualifying moments where we go through what is called a proofing process in which we are allowed to rest and rise a final time before breakthrough. Think about that, rest and rise a final time.

In baking there is a final proofing process in which the dough is shaped and formed and set aside to rest, ferment and rise! Do you know how many of us there are right now that are going through their final proofing but are to stubborn to remain obedient to God! We allow ourselves to be distracted by the world around us and we stay too long in a season. What happens if you over proof? When you bake the dough it wont rise but will fall flat. It wont rise to its full potential. So here God is shaping each and every one of us individually setting us aside to proof.

So before Jonah goes down to the bottom of the ship the Lord sends a great wind. So again Jonah knew before going down into the ship. It makes me wonder if Jonah was careless or arrogant? Because the Bible says that after the Lord sent the great wind there was a tempest on the sea, the mariners began to throw all of the cargo overboard in an attempt to increase the odds for survival and here is Jonah going down in the bottom of the ship. Now what is it important that the professional sailors are throwing their livelihood overboard in hopes that they would save their lives.

“For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989), Mt 16:25–26.”

For some reason I think that I am not the only one who has held on to something for so long that it began to carve out a space for itself within my luggage rack. All the moments in my life when I should’ve said yes or no for that matter. Whatever that luggage is, are you willing to throw it overboard with no guarantee of safety armed only with hope that God will consider you?

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989), Heb 11:1.