Today I would like to talk to you about when God interrupts your plans.
God wants to interrupt your plans for the sake of other people.
Sometimes in life we go about our day, going grocery shopping, driving home, drinking coffee outside Starbucks but then we might see someone who looks like then are in need. We as Christians need to be more open to sharing our faith with others because that could be their moment to come to Christ and God is trying to use you to get to them, if we hesitate then the opportunity may not come around again for that person.
God can interrupt our plan in other ways to like something tells us to go this other way home rather than our usual route, but we decide to ignore it and go home our usual way, then we either run into a delay that takes us 30 minutes long than normal. That something that warned us was God. He was telling us, “Hey I am trying to help you avoid unforeseen delays and dangers.”
Let us look at how he used Jonah for the sake of others.
In scripture it says in Jonah chapter 1 verse 2 that God came to Jonah said, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.”
Before this event happened, Jonah was just an ordinary guy, working, doing his best, doing his own plans, but God had other things in mind. He wanted to use Jonah for a purpose.
This is what God is doing. When he calls us, we either ignore the voice, play it off as nothing, its just coincidence. But the truth is that we need to listen to that voice.
Look at what Jonah did. In verse 3 it says, “Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.” Jonah decided that it was better to run away, than obey. Sometimes we like to run away from situations that seem hard, that we can’t control, that we can’t handle.
Look what God did in response, in verses 4 to 17 it says, “But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that ship was like to be broken. Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not. And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him. Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord, and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee. So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the Lord, and made vows. Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.”
God sent a storm in so that Jonah could get back on track. The sailors were well aware of whom was causing the storm. God had caused the storm because Jonah had fled from God. Well, they didn’t want to die. Jonah told them to send him overboard because he was to blame. The sailors tried to row for dry land, but couldn’t, finally they just had enough. They picked Jonah up and gave him the old heave-ho and tossed him overboard, then the storm ceased. After that the sailors started to worship God.
In Chapter 2 verses 1 through 10 it says, “Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly, And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple. They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.”
Jonah was in the whale for three days and 3 nights tossing and turning. I can imagine him getting sick, before he simply had enough. He had prayed to God for deliverance, and God heard him.
The whale spit him up on dry land, then in chapter 3 verses 1 to 3 it says, “And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh.”
This time Jonah heard and obeyed God.
We all have those moments where we have our plans, and they might seem important at the time, but we need to remember who really directs our plans, God.
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