Jonah 2:2: “And he said: / ‘I cried out to the LORD because of my affliction, / And He answered me. / Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, / And You heard my voice.'”

November 21st, 2021 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Jonah was swallowed by a fish, and he was inside its belly for 3 days. He said, “Out of the belly of Sheol I cried.” It may be that Jonah actually died or it just seemed so to him and he thought he was in hell. Whichever was true, the surroundings he was suffering in were bad, very bad. However, it was during those 3 days, under those miserable conditions, that Jonah learned a vital truth: “I cried, and You heard my voice.”

We have discovered that often when the worst possible thing that could happen to us happens, it turns out to be exactly what we needed. That is what happened to this reluctant prophet Jonah. Although he was thrown off the boat, which should have killed him, God turned it around and used it to save him. This is the same experience many of us who have called on the Lord in a desperate time have had. Prayer works! It is that simple. Even though Jonah’s attitude was black-hearted and willfully disobedient against God Almighty, as soon as he prayed, God heard and responded.

If we don’t get anything else out of this amazing story, we must not miss the emphasis and the importance the Holy Spirit is putting on prayer. When we read the whole prayer, we cannot escape the simple truth that from the depths of the sea God heard Jonah’s repentant cry and answered and saved him. When we rely on our own abilities, we get what we can do. When we rely on education, we get what education can do. When we rely upon government, we get what government can do. But when we rely upon God, we get what God can do.

“Thank You, LORD, that there is nothing too hard for You, so we ask You to hear our voice and answer our cry today.”