lesson Archives - Daily Thoughts about God

I grew up on a small farm, the youngest of four in a 2 bedroom log house. For most of my growing up years we had an outhouse, no phone. Cold snowy winters outside were warmed by a pot belly wood stove inside. Alcoholism made a huge impact and shaped all this. My mother was a strong woman. She lived through World War II and the Great Depression. Life seemed to have given her a harsh edge. Empathy was not a strength. Yet there was this tender side I discovered late one night. I’d been sick. After going to bed, mom, thinking I was asleep, gently ran her fingers through my hair. This act of tenderness was repeated in my growing up years. This tenderness showed me a side of my mom that was not often evident but yet very real. It gave me a greater confidence and security in my relationship with her.

At times my view of God has lacked an understanding of His tenderness. My understanding has been shaped by a couple of verses…

“He (God) tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.” – Isaiah 40:11 (NIV)

The context of this passage is a description of God power that shapes the universe, the nations and the rulers of the world. Yet in the middle of this is the snapshot of His tenderness…

“You (God) have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand upholds me; and Your gentleness makes me great.”
–Psalms 18:35 (NASB)

Gentleness in the context of strength is a profound contrast and gift. My mom gave me the first glimpse of this. As I have embraced God’s gentle touch in the circumstances of life it has brought healing, security and comfort. Allow God to carry you today.

~ ~ ~ ~

Would you like to know Jesus and have the peace and comfort that only he can give?

If so, why don’t you pray this prayer and invite Jesus into your life:

Lord Jesus, I need You. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make the kind of person You want me to be.

If you sincerely expressed that prayer to God, you can know that you have a personal relationship with Him. He will be your comfort in these troubled times. God promises us “peace that passes understanding” in other words peace in a world that doesn’t make sense. You can know peace and hope even when your world is in turmoil. God does not change. Ever.

By Mike Woodard
Used by Permission

“Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. [And Jonah said] In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry.” Jonah 1:17 & 2:1

Thank God for seaweed around your head.

Poor Jonah. God’s word had come to him saying he should go to Nineveh and “preach against them” because their wickedness had become offensive to God. It seems Jonah feared the people of Nineveh, because he headed instead to Tarshish.

Sometimes God disciplines us when we offend him, and so it was with Jonah. First hit by storm, then thrown overboard, and finally gobbled by a fish. The monster swam into dark waters, and Jonah felt threatened, banished, and cut-off. “The deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down” (Jonah 2:5-6).

For three days…

Only then did Jonah come to his senses. “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple” (Jonah 2:7). Jonah’s prayer is worth imitating because he recognized his wrongdoing, humbled himself, and rededicated himself to God’s ways.

Eventually much good came from Jonah’s obedience. The Ninevites repented, left evil habits, and enjoyed peace with God. And his story was told for generations as an example of what happens when you go against God’s plans, but then repent.

Jonah’s story even has an “Easter” twist. When Jesus foretold of his death and resurrection, he said, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12: 40).

Sometimes I feel buried, alone, and hopeless from God’s discipline. However, in those dark places God is still working His plan — His redeeming, reconciling, renewing plan. And, just as Jesus rose from the earth to bring salvation, God can raise me up — like he did Jonah — to be an instrument of his redeeming peace among people.

Father God, thank you for your gracious discipline of me. Help me see your purpose in hardship as I seek to become more like your son, Jesus, and an instrument of reconciliation on earth. Amen.

By Dr. Bill Strom

Used by permission
www.thelife.com/dailydevotions

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A Lesson from Mom

Further Reading

Lesson from the Belly of a Fish

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