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Jonah 2:1

1 Then Jonah [Yonah] prayed [palal] unto the LORD [Yahovah] his God [elohiym] out of the fish's [dagah] belly [me`ah], KJV-Interlinear

1 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the stomach of the fish, NASB

Jonah left God in anger. He did not like the command he was given, and rebelled, doing something else that he deemed best for himself, and then found himself in the middle of a storm and of controversy. The repercussion of his decision was his risking his very life and future because of his negative attitude.

Now he is in the belly of a fish, of all places. How cool can that be?

Jonah finds himself humiliated to the max. And, he did all to himself.

He didn't need God when he said no to Gods command (rebellion and now out of fellowship). He didn't need God when he left Israel (continued defiance and rejection of Gods Word). He didn't need God when he boarded the ship (indifference and apathy). He didn't need God when the storm came and the ships captain suggested that he pray to 'his' God too (stubbornness).

And all this got him deeper and deeper and deeper into trouble, to the point that he was thrown overboard. He was defiant and stubborn right up until the moment of his death. Yet he still refused to pray to God.

Jonah could not have known that God had a surprise for him in the ocean. For all he knew, he was going to drown. And still, facing death, when he was being accused, when he even suggested that he be thrown overboard (the martyr attitude), when the crew finally grabbed him and threw him over the side of the ship, he defiantly refused to pray to God.

Arrogance is a very powerful sin, and it prevents one from acknowledging his flaws and failures in life. It prevents one from acknowledging that his own beliefs and attitudes are flat wrong, false, and out of line. Arrogance is a nearly impenetrable barrier which prevents one from succeeding in life.

If you want to fail in life for sure, then allow yourself to be arrogant. And arrogance includes indifference toward God.

In Israel, Jonah was a free man. Now he is in the belly of a fish, in a prison of darkness and not so pleasant company. In Israel in the daylight, Jonah could see everything and yet he refused to see God in life. Now he is in a place where he can't see a thing, and the only thing he needs to see is God.

In Israel he had freedom of action in his life. He could pick and choose what he would or would not do from day to day. Now he is in the belly of a fish and he has few if any choices.

Smart decisions bring opportunities in abundance. Bad decisions bring few or fewer opportunities.

Jonah did not pray until he was in deep, deep trouble. He could have prayed when the storm was raging, and if not for himself, at least he could have prayed for the ship and its crew. But remember, he was angry and indifferent and he did not care for anything but his own selfish attitude. Arrogance narrows ones view of life. You look to yourself and what you want of have, and you could care less about the situations of anyone else.

In prosperity arrogant people become greedy, selfish, and indifferent. People just do not need God in their lives. In poverty arrogant people become self centered, angry, disillusioned, hostile, and so forth. They would prefer to blame God (and everyone else) rather than thanking Him.

Jonah is now humbled. He now realizes that he is not in charge of his own life, but he is at the mercy of God. God could have easily allowed him to drown. But God had a purpose for his life, so death would be postponed for the time being. Neither the ocean nor the critters in the ocean were allowed to take Jonah.

Jonah just needed a little time (quality time) with God, in order to get his thinking straightened out.

Prayer can occur at anytime and in any place. You do not have to be in a beautiful cathedral in order to pray to God. You do not need to be facing any particular direction in order to pray to God. You do not need to be dressed in any particular clothing in order to pray to God. Certainly Jonah's appearance was not one of his best. And of course your posture has nothing to do with your prayer.

He that has Christ dwelling in his own soul, by faith, wherever he goes he carries the prayer altar (in the soul) along with him.

Now is the time to post a prayer.

End Of Lesson

Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.

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