Jonah 2:1-2 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.”
A “second time.” Jonah’s repentance gave him a second chance to obey the Lord and to fulfill his ministry. And he did it successfully. The apostle Paul tells us that “the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable” [Romans 11:29]. Jonah’s disobedience did not take away his calling as a prophet. The discipline of the Lord was fruitful in his life. But compare King Saul. He also got a second chance after failing to wait for Samuel [1 Samuel 13] and he disobeyed again, and lost his kingship [1 Samuel 15]. But even that took many years to transpire after David was anointed.
We are often taught, “Our God is a God of second chances.” And He is. Our failures in ministry do not automatically disqualify us, for the Lord is patient with us and He knows our weaknesses and predilection to sin, and He knows we are always on a learning curve. But He does expect us to learn from our mistakes, and honestly repent from our failures.
Now there are examples in scripture where sin and failure to obey brought immediate irrevocable judgment with no second chance: witness Ananias and Sapphira, or Lot’s wife. So we ought to take notice that there are critical moments, decisions, and situations when our disobedience won’t be tolerated with patience. Thank God they are probably rare, for He is amazingly patient.
You may have failed the Lord in your service to Him through some character flaw or hidden sinful attitude which has been brought to light. Repent, and get back in fellowship with Him. And watch that you don’t make the same mistake or worse. He will restore your ministry because He loves you and has called you; and will probably use your failure to make you even more effective. Our God is so wonderful.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]There is an old Persian fable of a hen, a mouse, and a rabbit who lived together in a little house in the woods. They shared all the work and lived in harmony. The chicken found the firewood, the mouse brought the water from a nearby brook, and the rabbit cooked the meals. Each did his work faithfully and contentedly.
In the most extreme moment of his life, when his entire household was threatened with annihilation, the Patriarch Jacob wrestled with a Man through an entire sleepless night. Somehow, after this astounding encounter, Jacob came to the realization that he had been wrestling with God, and face to face! Once again, the Lord God of heaven showed Himself as a human being to a man He loved; this time, for the purpose of rescuing, blessing, and preserving the man’s destiny.
The second great awakening took place around 1790 until the 1840s. This movement saw ‘circuit riders’, traveling preachers who spread the Gospel to the edges of the frontier, affecting the growing American populace. Camp meetings in rural areas outside the traditional church with the primary focus of soul winning, were like “brushfires” of the Holy Spirit, attracting people for miles.
Tonight begins the Biblical feast of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) throughout the world! Roughly 2500 years ago, there was a special Sukkot celebration in Jerusalem. The people of Israel were exiled and dispersed all across the Babylonian empire. Later, they were given the right to return and start construction on the 2nd temple of Israel. Nehemiah 8 speaks of the special celebration that happened at that time. We read how Ezra taught the people out of the book of the law and how they responded in weeping and repentance before the God of Israel.
As I’ve been writing about the "great awakenings" that took place over the past few days. I believe we could be witnessing such a move of God.
In laymen’s terms, the difference between a ‘revival’ and an ‘awakening’ is simply that moves of God transcend denominations and sects. While various ‘denominations’ have revivals at times, an ‘awakening’ shakes the body of Christ across denominational boundaries in spite of their differences.
In the early 1700s, the western world including the United States, was being swept under the influence of a philosophical and cultural movement known as the Age of Enlightenment, also called the Age of Reason. At this critical time in history, the First Great Awakening was birthed by the Lord in the American colonies of the “New World”. Led by preachers such as Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield, a spiritual renewal took place which became a unifiying cultural foundation for the American Revolutionary War, which began in the late 1770s.
For those who have been following us, we have been ‘re-deployed’ to the United States at this pivotal moment in history. For those who know me personally, my heart is for revival and for preparing the Bride of Messiah to meet her Creator.