In the previous installment of Jonah's exciting life, God told him to go to the city of Nineveh to tell them to stop their evil ways, but Jonah didn't think it necessary, so he used his frequent-flyer miles to go somewhere else. As a result, he's currently being digested in the belly of a giant fish.
That's where we begin, with Jonah trying to strike a deal with God. It goes without saying he's realized by this point he screwed up--how much lower can you go than the small intestine of a sperm whale swimming at the bottom of the ocean?
But Jonah's got an idea; he's going to call for help.
Please understand, this whole ordeal probably happened before S.O.S. was invented, so for Jonah to call for help and be heard was pretty miraculous.
Even though Jonah was in pretty much the worst possible situation he could fathom, yet he didn't blame God for messing his life up. Despite his situation, Jonah took full responsibility for it all and accepted God had allowed him an in-depth look at fish guts for a reason.
Chances were, Jonah had no clue what God was planning to do with him but he was thrilled because he knew whatever God did would be for the glory of God.
So what does Jonah do? He rejoices!
One of his biggest revelations came when he recognized God's grace surpassed whatever any other "god" was capable of. It seems Jonah understood the God he believed in would forgive him if he repented from his sins and turned back to God.
He knew beyond all doubt God would save him! How about that!
You know how God works in mysterious ways? It seems God let this whale get beached so it could start heaving until, lo and behold, it barfed Jonah onto the shore. Personally, I wonder how often Jonah took a bath if he gave the giant man-eating fish thing indigestion, but that's beside the point.
The point is simple. No matter what you've done, God will welcome you back with open arms if you stop doing stuff God doesn't want you doing. He will forgive you, and know that he will save you.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
An Adventure of Biblical Proportions
In a previous blog entry, I said I wanted to analyze the book of Jonah, focusing on its relevance to modern life and also the spiritual advice I found in it.
Let's start at the beginning, shall we?
So, God told Jonah to go to this city, Nineveh, and talk to them about God and what they were doing wrong. For whatever reason, Jonah flatly refused, heading to a different city instead.
Not surprisingly, God wasn't pleased so He sent a storm to give Jonah a wake up call. Meanwhile, everyone else on the boat was petrified by the storm, so much so they even threw their cargo overboard. Personally, I'm envisioning the dudes on that show "Deadliest Catch" being out there at sea and then a storm so monstrous comes up everyone on board unanimously agrees to dump their entire catch for the season back into the sea just so they can make it home alive.
Can you imagine what it would take for that to happen?
Back to the story, it got so bad, these sailor types were frantically searching for a God to save them, and presumably they had enough variety for the captain to feel it necessary to wake Jonah on the off-chance his God would step in.
When the captain woke Jonah, the scene up top was in total panic. Standing on one hand on the tip of the ship's forward-most point with Yoda balanced on his foot was a Luke Skywalker impersonator but the Force is not strong with this one. Towards the rear of the ship, someone was hoping to be touched by the noodly appendage of the Flying Spaghetti Monster but the poor dude was on Atkins. Probably someone was worshiping a voice in their pinkie and maybe someone managed to stop a Buddha paperweight from being thrown overboard in the earlier cargo dump. But despite their best efforts, no one was really having any luck reaching their ethereal being of choice.
Bear in mind, I took some liberty reading in between the lines there, but I'm sure the actual event wasn't too dissimilar.
By the time sleepyhead Jonah got up and made it to the deck, the crew was to the point of drawing straws to find out who caused the storm.
Naturally, Jonah drew the short straw so everyone wanted to know what they could do to stop the storm.
Personally, I think Jonah had a flare for sarcasm.
"Pick me up and throw me into the sea," he replied, "and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you." (Jonah 1:12)
Someone on that ship was reasonable because they tried to get out of the storm on their own, but eventually Jonah got voted off the island, so to speak.
When the storm stopped immediately after they threw Jonah overboard, one could say it put the fear of God in everyone left on the boat.
It seems Jonah and Pinocchio had something in common.
That's my basic synopsis of chapter one, with only two real points I can put into action in my life. Firstly, God doesn't like it when we do something contrary to what He has planned for us; we shouldn't fight His will in our lives. Secondly, God is all-powerful, and no storm in your life is too great for him to overcome. If you're going through a rough spot, maybe God's trying to get you to see you're not on track with His will.
In case it's unclear, all He wants for you is for you to accept Jesus into your heart so that you can spend eternity in God's love.
Let's start at the beginning, shall we?
So, God told Jonah to go to this city, Nineveh, and talk to them about God and what they were doing wrong. For whatever reason, Jonah flatly refused, heading to a different city instead.
Not surprisingly, God wasn't pleased so He sent a storm to give Jonah a wake up call. Meanwhile, everyone else on the boat was petrified by the storm, so much so they even threw their cargo overboard. Personally, I'm envisioning the dudes on that show "Deadliest Catch" being out there at sea and then a storm so monstrous comes up everyone on board unanimously agrees to dump their entire catch for the season back into the sea just so they can make it home alive.
Can you imagine what it would take for that to happen?
Back to the story, it got so bad, these sailor types were frantically searching for a God to save them, and presumably they had enough variety for the captain to feel it necessary to wake Jonah on the off-chance his God would step in.
When the captain woke Jonah, the scene up top was in total panic. Standing on one hand on the tip of the ship's forward-most point with Yoda balanced on his foot was a Luke Skywalker impersonator but the Force is not strong with this one. Towards the rear of the ship, someone was hoping to be touched by the noodly appendage of the Flying Spaghetti Monster but the poor dude was on Atkins. Probably someone was worshiping a voice in their pinkie and maybe someone managed to stop a Buddha paperweight from being thrown overboard in the earlier cargo dump. But despite their best efforts, no one was really having any luck reaching their ethereal being of choice.
Bear in mind, I took some liberty reading in between the lines there, but I'm sure the actual event wasn't too dissimilar.
By the time sleepyhead Jonah got up and made it to the deck, the crew was to the point of drawing straws to find out who caused the storm.
Naturally, Jonah drew the short straw so everyone wanted to know what they could do to stop the storm.
Personally, I think Jonah had a flare for sarcasm.
"Pick me up and throw me into the sea," he replied, "and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you." (Jonah 1:12)
Someone on that ship was reasonable because they tried to get out of the storm on their own, but eventually Jonah got voted off the island, so to speak.
When the storm stopped immediately after they threw Jonah overboard, one could say it put the fear of God in everyone left on the boat.
It seems Jonah and Pinocchio had something in common.
That's my basic synopsis of chapter one, with only two real points I can put into action in my life. Firstly, God doesn't like it when we do something contrary to what He has planned for us; we shouldn't fight His will in our lives. Secondly, God is all-powerful, and no storm in your life is too great for him to overcome. If you're going through a rough spot, maybe God's trying to get you to see you're not on track with His will.
In case it's unclear, all He wants for you is for you to accept Jesus into your heart so that you can spend eternity in God's love.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Jonah, but not the asparagus.
Lots of people have heard of the Veggie Tales movie involving Jonah, the dude from the Bible who got swallowed by a whale.
But yeah, recently I read the four chapters of his book, and I found some things of interest. The first is that the Book of Jonah applies to modern life way better than some of the other books of the Bible. The other point of note is the spiritual shove this book gave me about trusting God.
Although I'd sat down here to write about both discoveries, I think I'm going to break them up into several blogs so I can use this blog to fully analyze and grow in my relationship with God through study and commentary.
Thank you for your time, and let me tell you, this fish story isn't about the one that got away, but about those who "cannot tell their right hand from their left," and yes, you should be concerned.
But yeah, recently I read the four chapters of his book, and I found some things of interest. The first is that the Book of Jonah applies to modern life way better than some of the other books of the Bible. The other point of note is the spiritual shove this book gave me about trusting God.
Although I'd sat down here to write about both discoveries, I think I'm going to break them up into several blogs so I can use this blog to fully analyze and grow in my relationship with God through study and commentary.
Thank you for your time, and let me tell you, this fish story isn't about the one that got away, but about those who "cannot tell their right hand from their left," and yes, you should be concerned.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Getting something off my chest.
So, I've been thinking about that last blog entry I wrote.
I was angry, and I had no reason to be angry.
The Bible talks about patience and love and faithfulness, and all that other stuff. Yet, the Bible also contains what I believe to be a profound truth, probably the only truth out there. With this truth comes a hope so certain and all-encompassing, I cannot help but want others to share in this hope that I have.
As a writer, I know and understand a lot of the basic principles to writing material that keeps readers interested. Regardless of whether said ability to write is represented here, I believe God has blessed me with the ability to write. Mostly, I write fiction; I've got a 300 page novel in the early stages of publication because God has blessed me.
Personally, I expected the story to flop after I'd written the first six or seven chapters but to my amazement, it continues getting praise for hooking readers and building suspense. I suspect my readers enjoy reading Space Tail because of the fundamental principles I was taught.
The first writing technique I learned came from my mother, who also taught me while I was still homeschooled. Her red Papermate circled so many redundancies and repetitive statements, I learned to abhor them. Mum taught me never to repeat a word or phrase while it remained in the readers' minds. For me, that meant, if I remembered writing something, I absolutely could not write another sentence that way in the rest of the paper, or in the case of Space Tail, chapter.
Then came the figurative language. From that shocking October day when I rushed to pregnant Mrs. Wiley's English class, I got lectured on metaphors, similes, and their assorted relatives. I don't remember exactly when I first started trying them on for size--perhaps in eighth grade--but I learned how to make them. By the time I got to college, I'd learned to calm them before their ADHD-inspired connections confused everyone.
After taking English 300 Intro to Creative Writing last semester, I learned another rock-solid way to convince readers what was in front of them was worth their time. Professor Smith told the class we needed concrete examples for our writing to blossom like the orchid we hoped it would be. In addition, she explained concrete details alone could not elevate what we wrote noticably higher than all the other stuff out there for publishers to rifle through.
What we needed was right underneath our noses, or rather, in them. Sensory detail is the one aspect of a person's writing that propels their work beyond mediocre and amateur. Readers don't just want to see and hear it, they want to squeel over the bitter tang of the fly-infested trashbag as it bursts on the scalding driveway.
Being a Christian works the same way.
Many of my friends who enjoy writing don't like the rules by which I write because you've got to work at each of them individually. I choose to apply them to my writing because I know the final product will come out better than I could ever have imagined it would.
If the same story I started writing only to get me through summer school managed to astonish me with its quality when I went back to revise it, then I know in my heart God--who happens to have a reputation for being all powerful--will do something amazing.
I was angry, and I had no reason to be angry.
The Bible talks about patience and love and faithfulness, and all that other stuff. Yet, the Bible also contains what I believe to be a profound truth, probably the only truth out there. With this truth comes a hope so certain and all-encompassing, I cannot help but want others to share in this hope that I have.
As a writer, I know and understand a lot of the basic principles to writing material that keeps readers interested. Regardless of whether said ability to write is represented here, I believe God has blessed me with the ability to write. Mostly, I write fiction; I've got a 300 page novel in the early stages of publication because God has blessed me.
Personally, I expected the story to flop after I'd written the first six or seven chapters but to my amazement, it continues getting praise for hooking readers and building suspense. I suspect my readers enjoy reading Space Tail because of the fundamental principles I was taught.
The first writing technique I learned came from my mother, who also taught me while I was still homeschooled. Her red Papermate circled so many redundancies and repetitive statements, I learned to abhor them. Mum taught me never to repeat a word or phrase while it remained in the readers' minds. For me, that meant, if I remembered writing something, I absolutely could not write another sentence that way in the rest of the paper, or in the case of Space Tail, chapter.
Then came the figurative language. From that shocking October day when I rushed to pregnant Mrs. Wiley's English class, I got lectured on metaphors, similes, and their assorted relatives. I don't remember exactly when I first started trying them on for size--perhaps in eighth grade--but I learned how to make them. By the time I got to college, I'd learned to calm them before their ADHD-inspired connections confused everyone.
After taking English 300 Intro to Creative Writing last semester, I learned another rock-solid way to convince readers what was in front of them was worth their time. Professor Smith told the class we needed concrete examples for our writing to blossom like the orchid we hoped it would be. In addition, she explained concrete details alone could not elevate what we wrote noticably higher than all the other stuff out there for publishers to rifle through.
What we needed was right underneath our noses, or rather, in them. Sensory detail is the one aspect of a person's writing that propels their work beyond mediocre and amateur. Readers don't just want to see and hear it, they want to squeel over the bitter tang of the fly-infested trashbag as it bursts on the scalding driveway.
Being a Christian works the same way.
Many of my friends who enjoy writing don't like the rules by which I write because you've got to work at each of them individually. I choose to apply them to my writing because I know the final product will come out better than I could ever have imagined it would.
If the same story I started writing only to get me through summer school managed to astonish me with its quality when I went back to revise it, then I know in my heart God--who happens to have a reputation for being all powerful--will do something amazing.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
An explanation of sorts
As a Christian, I think it would be a good idea for others to know why I'm writing this blog. I'm not doing it because I'm a dogmatic church-on-Sundays hypocrite. For me, it's not about changing people, because I like people the way they are. It's more a matter of me wanting to share with others the hope and joy I've found.
I'm not saying non Christians are unhappier than myself, nor am I saying Jesus is the only way to be happy in life, no questions asked lest you declare yourself a heathen and acknowledge thou shalt spend eternity in a lake of burning sulphur. No. What I'm getting at is that God, i.e. the big man upstairs, he wants one thing for us.
He wants us to have a choice.
Of course, he wants us to love him and worship him too, but he wants us to choose to do it. Otherwise, we'd all be mindless robots, and where is the fun in that?
This is why I write this blog to explain what God has done in my life. I have a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy, that for me, basically means I get tired really easily when walking or standing. For the most part, it is only my lower body that is affected, although I do have back pain because of it. I'm in a wheelchair most of the time, but I thank God for it.
I bet you're thinking I'm crazy right about now, and maybe I am, but I believe that God put me in a wheelchair for a reason. It is beyond me to say what that reason is, because God is not out to get us. Personally, I believe God blessed me with my disability so that I might learn to be patient and to trust in him.
Sure, my dad is a licensed preacher. He doesn't have his own church or anything, but the household I grew up in was the stereotypical preacher's house, so I heard all the church stories and stuff.
I also heard with conviction that the Bible is literally the word of God. You're right, it's a translated document, and has been translated countless times, sometimes as translations of a translation. What does that matter though? If God truly is the almighty god even atheists acknowledge he very well might be, what's to stop him from having his hand in each translation of the Bible?
By the way, that's not me being brainwashed, that's just me reasoning things out.
The conclusion I've come to is that I can trust the guidance shown in the Bible. Granted, like 99% of it confuses me to no end, and I'm not even sure I'm understanding the other 1% right, but if I can try to apply that 1% to my life then God's presence will be clearer to me.
It is.
Don't get me wrong, I know I'm not that saintly a person. In fact, I see as a result of my own personal study of the Bible how much of a terrible person I am. I've been a slave to explosive anger and sharp criticisms; jealousy and lust aren't hard to be guilty of either. Self-pity is the big one for me, being disabled.
Yet, through my faith in Jesus Christ I am free of all that crud. I know I will still sin--it's human nature--but I pray that I will learn to live a more godly life.
The stuff in the Bible that really yanked on my heartstrings involved the strength God provides. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 promises that the power of God is made perfect through our weakness, and let me tell you, physical weakness is a daily struggle for me. I have my good days and my bad. On the good days, God keeps me going steady. On the bad days, my legs give out on me, the exhaustion hurts enough to chain me to a couch or bed, and I cannot go on--
--until I pray for strength.
And oh what strength my God gives to those who call on the name of Jesus!
When I trust God to help me with my MD, I suddenly have more strength and vitality than I ever do on my best of days. You could argue that I am "healed" because I am predisposed to believe God will heal me, and I won't stop you. I don't know that you could explain as easily what it feels like. Pour a glass of water slowly and watch how the water splashes and climbs the sides of the glass in jumping leaps. Got the image in your head? Good, now flip it upside down--the image of the splashing water, not the glass of water--and imagine pouring water into a cup shaped like a person. That's what it's like, just cool and tingling.
So now you're probably thinking I'm loony, and that's okay. I'd rather be loony for God than sane for science. Besides, when did science ever promise superpowers to its followers?
I write to keep my hope in the Lord. That is all.
I'm not saying non Christians are unhappier than myself, nor am I saying Jesus is the only way to be happy in life, no questions asked lest you declare yourself a heathen and acknowledge thou shalt spend eternity in a lake of burning sulphur. No. What I'm getting at is that God, i.e. the big man upstairs, he wants one thing for us.
He wants us to have a choice.
Of course, he wants us to love him and worship him too, but he wants us to choose to do it. Otherwise, we'd all be mindless robots, and where is the fun in that?
This is why I write this blog to explain what God has done in my life. I have a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy, that for me, basically means I get tired really easily when walking or standing. For the most part, it is only my lower body that is affected, although I do have back pain because of it. I'm in a wheelchair most of the time, but I thank God for it.
I bet you're thinking I'm crazy right about now, and maybe I am, but I believe that God put me in a wheelchair for a reason. It is beyond me to say what that reason is, because God is not out to get us. Personally, I believe God blessed me with my disability so that I might learn to be patient and to trust in him.
Sure, my dad is a licensed preacher. He doesn't have his own church or anything, but the household I grew up in was the stereotypical preacher's house, so I heard all the church stories and stuff.
I also heard with conviction that the Bible is literally the word of God. You're right, it's a translated document, and has been translated countless times, sometimes as translations of a translation. What does that matter though? If God truly is the almighty god even atheists acknowledge he very well might be, what's to stop him from having his hand in each translation of the Bible?
By the way, that's not me being brainwashed, that's just me reasoning things out.
The conclusion I've come to is that I can trust the guidance shown in the Bible. Granted, like 99% of it confuses me to no end, and I'm not even sure I'm understanding the other 1% right, but if I can try to apply that 1% to my life then God's presence will be clearer to me.
It is.
Don't get me wrong, I know I'm not that saintly a person. In fact, I see as a result of my own personal study of the Bible how much of a terrible person I am. I've been a slave to explosive anger and sharp criticisms; jealousy and lust aren't hard to be guilty of either. Self-pity is the big one for me, being disabled.
Yet, through my faith in Jesus Christ I am free of all that crud. I know I will still sin--it's human nature--but I pray that I will learn to live a more godly life.
The stuff in the Bible that really yanked on my heartstrings involved the strength God provides. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 promises that the power of God is made perfect through our weakness, and let me tell you, physical weakness is a daily struggle for me. I have my good days and my bad. On the good days, God keeps me going steady. On the bad days, my legs give out on me, the exhaustion hurts enough to chain me to a couch or bed, and I cannot go on--
--until I pray for strength.
And oh what strength my God gives to those who call on the name of Jesus!
When I trust God to help me with my MD, I suddenly have more strength and vitality than I ever do on my best of days. You could argue that I am "healed" because I am predisposed to believe God will heal me, and I won't stop you. I don't know that you could explain as easily what it feels like. Pour a glass of water slowly and watch how the water splashes and climbs the sides of the glass in jumping leaps. Got the image in your head? Good, now flip it upside down--the image of the splashing water, not the glass of water--and imagine pouring water into a cup shaped like a person. That's what it's like, just cool and tingling.
So now you're probably thinking I'm loony, and that's okay. I'd rather be loony for God than sane for science. Besides, when did science ever promise superpowers to its followers?
I write to keep my hope in the Lord. That is all.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Dawn of the Dead must be for Sunday service
So I don't like to blog about personal stuff because I usually end up wallowing in self pity over my disability.
Tonight however, I want to write about what God is doing in my life. I sat down an hour ago to read the Bible to find encouragement after the depressing reminders of my own problems I'd encountered today while spending time with my best friend.
I was namely discouraged because I couldn't physically play more than two rounds of Twister without exhausting myself (and also for my fear of recreating bone-popping muscle cramps, like those I've had before), I don't have a girlfriend at the time of writing this, and I seemed to be receiving mixed messages about my best friend's feelings toward me.
Now, I'm rejoicing in the Lord because in my readings, I went from a grizzly depiction of zombies in the Bible (see Ezekiel 37:7-11) and how even zombie armies can lose hope, to a promise of survival (Hebrews 10:31) due to my faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
Check it out for yourself:
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
(Hebrews 10:39 New International Version)
Sounds to me like the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) might make a great zombie shotgun, though I will admit, that's just my interpretation at the moment. Either way, I know I have nothing to worry about because if God can raise a zombie army and then promise me salvation, I'm in good hands for if God is with me, then who can be against me?
Tonight however, I want to write about what God is doing in my life. I sat down an hour ago to read the Bible to find encouragement after the depressing reminders of my own problems I'd encountered today while spending time with my best friend.
I was namely discouraged because I couldn't physically play more than two rounds of Twister without exhausting myself (and also for my fear of recreating bone-popping muscle cramps, like those I've had before), I don't have a girlfriend at the time of writing this, and I seemed to be receiving mixed messages about my best friend's feelings toward me.
Now, I'm rejoicing in the Lord because in my readings, I went from a grizzly depiction of zombies in the Bible (see Ezekiel 37:7-11) and how even zombie armies can lose hope, to a promise of survival (Hebrews 10:31) due to my faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
Check it out for yourself:
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
9 Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.' " 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.
11 Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.'
(Ezekiel 37:7-11 New International Version)39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
(Hebrews 10:39 New International Version)
Sounds to me like the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) might make a great zombie shotgun, though I will admit, that's just my interpretation at the moment. Either way, I know I have nothing to worry about because if God can raise a zombie army and then promise me salvation, I'm in good hands for if God is with me, then who can be against me?
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