If You Can Get Upset Over A Plant, Surely I Can Feel Sorry For A Big City Like Nineveh. (And Tampa)

Today’s "Life Journal" Daily Bible Reading can be found on Line. Click Here!
Jonah 1; Jonah 2; Jonah 3; Jonah 4; 2 Timothy 2 

If You Can Get Upset

Over A Plant, 

Surely I Can Feel Sorry For A Big City Like Nineveh. (And Tampa)

Scripture

Jonah 4

⁶ The LORD made a gourd plant grow quickly over Jonah. This made a cool place for Jonah to sit and helped him to be more comfortable. He was very happy because of this plant.

⁷ The next morning, God sent a worm to eat part of the plant. The worm began eating the plant, and the plant died.

⁸ After the sun was high in the sky, God caused a hot east wind to blow. The sun became very hot on Jonah’s head, and he became very weak. He asked God to let him die. He said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

⁹ But God said to Jonah, “Do you think it is right for you to be angry just because this plant died?”
Jonah answered, “Yes, it is right for me to be angry! I am angry enough to die!”

¹⁰ And the LORD said, “You did nothing for that plant. You did not make it grow. It grew up in the night, and the next day it died. And now you are sad about it. 

¹¹ If you can get upset over a plant, surely I can feel sorry for a big city like Nineveh. There are many people and animals in that city. There are more than 120,000 people there who did not know they were doing wrong.” 

Observation

I wonder if Jonah realized that a worm had killed his shade! He was so upset over the death of the gourd, but he didn’t care anything for the people of Nineveh. God was working on Jonah, but I don’t think Jonah got it even after getting swallowed by the great fish, spending 3 days in his belly, and having a worm eat his favorite shade providing gourd!

God sends “worms” into our lives to get our attention. They come in many forms! Their purpose is to get us to refocus on God’s agenda and His kingdom. This story shows me that my God is very patient. He can send lots of “worms” if He needs to do so. They come into our lives to make us uncomfortable. They come into our lives to direct our attention away from “me” and place our attention on “them”. 

Are we uncomfortable? 

God has the city of Tampa on His heart and that is where He wants our hearts to be focused too!

Application

I will keep my focus off of “me” today and place it on what God wants me to do. How about you?  

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help me not to be a Jonah today. I don’t want You to have to send “worms” into my life to get my attention! Give me Your heart for the people around me. 

Today’s "Life Journal" Daily Bible Reading can be found on Line. Click Here!