Jonah 2, 1 Timothy 1

Jonah 2

From the belly of a Whale, here’s what Jonah said, “But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD." Jonah 2:9

God’s rescue sometime comes in unconventional ways. I’ve always thought of the whale swallowing Jonah as a punishment, but it was a rescue. A weird one at that, but God obviously wasn’t done with Jonah yet. But he didn’t drown. So easily in God’s provision and leading, we still complain in the way he provides and leads. We want it to be a certain way. Somehow we manage to make it about us.

I’m dealing with that as God leads through our facility and worship leader. God has seriously gone before us in showing us He is at work. In that, we trust him, we celebrate him, and then as soon as something doesn’t go the way I want it to, I want to take control.

Even if Akins HS isn’t our place or if Michael Armstrong isn’t our guy (although I sense both of them are), God has a plan already in place. His timing will prevail. God, may I remain patient, as I trust your timing and your continual leading. May we find peace in the moments of waiting. Allow us to keep working hard, but to trust patiently when the next step is not revealed.

1 Timothy 1

3As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer 4nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's work—which is by faith. 5The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. 7They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.

In 1 Timothy, Paul is leading Timothy to not allow the teaching of disputable matters (among other things) to divide the church. He reminds him that they only promote controversies rather than God’s work. I think it’s interesting as I can’t help but to personally begin to internally rethink some of my beliefs on certain matters that are not the “majors”. It’s amazing how they steal your attention.

I think the key is found in verse 6 to not turn to meaningless talk. Any talk or thought that has no value or ultimate meaning, why spend time on it, much less argument over it while the world is out there hurting and dying?

Then the foolishness sets in. It’s amazing that not only do we claim to understand the mystery of God, but in defensiveness, our nature is to “so confidently affirm” that which we don’t even know what we’re talking about. Our nature is so jacked up!
God, may we teach your undisputable truth and not affirm what we do not know. May we not so be proud, that we think we’ve got you all figured out. Thank you God that in your sovereignty, we cannot grasp your mind and your complete ways. Thank you that your ways are higher than my ways and your thoughts are higher than my thoughts.