Reason #789
There is blessing in obedience. Blessings that come from doing what God asks. Blessings that you may never receive otherwise. But they are contingent upon what you decide to do.
I thought about Jonah today. About how God specifically called him and made clear the task God was asking him to carry out. And yet Jonah turned and went in the complete opposite direction. Determined he wasn't going to carry out God's command, Jonah ran. He didn't want to do what God had asked because he didn't see the value in the request. Maybe he did, but he didn't want to admit that. And so Jonah said, "No." Jonah didn't deem God's requests important enough to carry out, and so one stormy night and a three day ride in the belly of a fish got him to where God wanted him to be. It was then that Jonah finally decided to be obedient.
God was sending Jonah with a message, and it didn't matter if Jonah thought it was important to take it. It wasn't really for Jonah's benefit anyway, it was for the people of Nineveh. God was on the verge of destroying them and while this really had no affect on Jonah's life, it did. Because God was not only going to reach the people of Nineveh and change their hearts through Jonah's obedience to go and share God's word with them, God was going to teach Jonah an important lesson so that he could become more like the Lord. God was going to use this act of obedience to bless the people of Nineveh with life and salvation, and He was going to bless Jonah with the opportunity to grow His faith.
Jonah didn't have to take that message. He could have continued to be disobedient, but thankfully he realized that wasn't the best idea. God could have saved Nineveh in a million other ways, or He could have just wiped them out like He originally planned. But God is so generous and rich in love that He desires to pour out blessings on all of creation whether or not they deserve it. Yet the blessings usually come through obedience, and so often we are the ones who can carry those blessings or withhold them.
God asks things of us and rightfully so. After all, we ask a lot of Him. Sometimes those things aren't so easy. Sometimes we don't even see the benefit or value in them. But blessings come in obedience and the biggest blessing is honoring the Lord through your obedience. That's all He really wants. If it affects no one else, if it doesn't change anyone else's life, it changes yours. That's what we should want. Lives that are changed by God. Lives that reflect Him. Lives that are blessed by Him.
#789 - For the blessings found in obedience.
"But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.” - Jonah 2:9
I thought about Jonah today. About how God specifically called him and made clear the task God was asking him to carry out. And yet Jonah turned and went in the complete opposite direction. Determined he wasn't going to carry out God's command, Jonah ran. He didn't want to do what God had asked because he didn't see the value in the request. Maybe he did, but he didn't want to admit that. And so Jonah said, "No." Jonah didn't deem God's requests important enough to carry out, and so one stormy night and a three day ride in the belly of a fish got him to where God wanted him to be. It was then that Jonah finally decided to be obedient.
God was sending Jonah with a message, and it didn't matter if Jonah thought it was important to take it. It wasn't really for Jonah's benefit anyway, it was for the people of Nineveh. God was on the verge of destroying them and while this really had no affect on Jonah's life, it did. Because God was not only going to reach the people of Nineveh and change their hearts through Jonah's obedience to go and share God's word with them, God was going to teach Jonah an important lesson so that he could become more like the Lord. God was going to use this act of obedience to bless the people of Nineveh with life and salvation, and He was going to bless Jonah with the opportunity to grow His faith.
Jonah didn't have to take that message. He could have continued to be disobedient, but thankfully he realized that wasn't the best idea. God could have saved Nineveh in a million other ways, or He could have just wiped them out like He originally planned. But God is so generous and rich in love that He desires to pour out blessings on all of creation whether or not they deserve it. Yet the blessings usually come through obedience, and so often we are the ones who can carry those blessings or withhold them.
God asks things of us and rightfully so. After all, we ask a lot of Him. Sometimes those things aren't so easy. Sometimes we don't even see the benefit or value in them. But blessings come in obedience and the biggest blessing is honoring the Lord through your obedience. That's all He really wants. If it affects no one else, if it doesn't change anyone else's life, it changes yours. That's what we should want. Lives that are changed by God. Lives that reflect Him. Lives that are blessed by Him.
#789 - For the blessings found in obedience.
"But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone.” - Jonah 2:9