Jonah 1:6 So the captain came to him, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God; perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”
At this point, the captain (who probably worshiped Baal and Yamm, god of the sea) has more faith than Jonah.
Frantic in the midst of impending catastrophe, he jolts Jonah back to life and intercession. They say there are no “foxhole atheists”; when great danger comes God somehow bursts into existence. But these sailors were polytheists, and desperation led them to implore the local god of every man in the boat for mercy and salvation. Even these idol worshipers knew that prayer is the only recourse in the hour of desperation.
It’s something to remember and apply in our day to day encounters with people. So many these days are dealing with serious and even desperate situations, while they’re waiting there at the checkout counter…and while they don’t much care to hear a sermon, they might really appreciate our prayers.
We’ve been in situations, with hardly a clue whom we were speaking with, and simply said, “Do you mind if I pray for you?” Suddenly eyes light up, “Yes, please do!” Prayer brings people back into direct relationship with God and reminds them of their dependence on Him, and whether we’re on a ship in a storm, or facing some other potential catastrophe, we all desperately need His grace and favor. And connecting with people this way is actually easier than you might think.
The times are coming, and are already here, when more and more people facing desperation may turn and cry to us, “Call on Your God to save us!” They may even wake us up from our spiritual slumber to do it. Rather than rubbing our eyes and groaning, “Duh, what?” we ought to be already awake, looking for them now.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Thousands of people all over the world will celebrate Pesach (Passover) tonight, commemorating the day the Angel of Death passed over the Israelite slaves in Egypt, sparing their firstborn because the blood of a lamb was applied on their doorposts. Many believers in Yeshua (Jesus) also recognize this as the day that Messiah was crucified, offering Himself as the perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, which reconciled man to His Maker, and restored them to close relationship.
In the parable of the unmerciful servant, the servant mistakenly thought that he could demand justice from another servant all the while asking mercy for himself from the king. When the king found out about this servant’s awful behavior, he became enraged and said to him “You wicked servant, I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to; couldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?”
As the Biblical feast of Pesach (Passover) is celebrated throughout the world on Thursday, we are reminded of the deliverance of the Jewish people from the land of Egypt where they had served as slaves. The word for slaves in Hebrew is “avadim”, which, interestingly, is also the same word for “servants.”
In these days, we have to pray for wisdom! In the letter of James, the Lord’s brother, he writes, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all liberally…” [James 1:5] The context for this request is trials! Since this is a time of almost constant trials, God knows we need His wisdom, more than ever.
Throughout the Bible, the faith of the saints was never something passive — but rather a faith of action.
Much of the world is dealing with the greatest disruption of their lives… probably in their lifetimes, particularly in the West, and what is known as the “First World”. Here’s a helpful perspective toward understanding what is taking place.
Continuing our exciting account of the Moravian Revival, I have to highlight the minuscule quantity of saints involved. This was, in proportion to its astounding effect, a very small group, a little church. Yet the amazing demonstration of God’s principle of power through unity re-echoes the events at Pentecost when 120 believers also were in profound unity waiting on the Lord. It wasn’t the numbers but the removal of contention and division that paved the way for a 100-year revival.