In the Belly of the Beast

 

 

 

Scripture

Jonah 2

2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, ² saying,

“I called to the Lord out of my distress,
    and he answered me;
out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
    and you heard my voice.
³ You cast me into the deep,
    into the heart of the seas,
    and the flood surrounded me;
all your waves and your billows
    passed over me.
⁴ Then I said, ‘I am driven away
    from your sight;
how shall I look again
    upon your holy temple?’
⁵ The waters closed in over me;
    the deep surrounded me;
weeds were wrapped around my head
⁶     at the roots of the mountains.
I went down to the land
    whose bars closed upon me forever;
yet you brought up my life from the Pit,
    O Lord my God.
⁷ As my life was ebbing away,
    I remembered the Lord;
and my prayer came to you,
    into your holy temple.
⁸ Those who worship vain idols
    forsake their true loyalty.
⁹ But I with the voice of thanksgiving
    will sacrifice to you;
what I have vowed I will pay.
    Deliverance belongs to the Lord!”

¹⁰ Then the Lord spoke to the fish, and it spewed Jonah out upon the dry land.

 

Devotion

 Today is Part 2 of our 4-part series on the Book of Jonah.  Last time, Jonah ran away from God's call only to discover that running doesn't work.  When the ship's crew cast Jonah into the stormy sea, that should have been it for this poor excuse for a prophet.  God, though, sent a fish to swallow him whole, which saved him from drowning.  Jonah sat in the fish's belly for three days before he finally opened his mouth to pray at the beginning of Chapter 2.

Jonah's prayer is surprisingly upbeat.  One imagines that the inside of a fish's belly would be a terrifying place--dark, cramped, and full of the sound of the surrounding water as the fish traverses the depths of the sea.  Most people would say that Jonah is at rock bottom.  And yet the prophet himself doesn't see it that way.  Instead, his prayer focuses on how God has already "brought [him] up out of the Pit" and saved him. 

As bad as his current situation is, Jonah knows that it should have been much worse.  For Jonah, rock bottom was the moment that he sank beneath the waves the seaweed began to cover him.  But then--just when he was at his physical and spiritual lowest point, the fish saved him from drowning.  The belly of a fish may not be the most ideal location, but it has given Jonah a relatively safe space to reflect upon the decisions that brought him to this place and consider where he should go from here.  Basically, God has given him a second chance to get things right.  Now, after three days, Jonah is finally ready to repent of his waywardness and accept the call he has been given.  His newly repentant nature helps him understand that through God's grace, things are already looking up.

I can identify with Jonah.  Like him and countless others throughout history, there have been times when I have run from God's will.  I won't go into the details here, but things never worked out as I had planned.  Each time I ran away, I eventually found myself sinking beneath life's waves.  But then--just as I was going under--God brought someone or something into my life that saved me.  And though things may have still looked bleak for a while, God gave me a safe place to consider my actions, repent, and start again.  The way forward would be risky, but I knew that the same God who had saved me from the worst of things would help me get where I needed to go.  Even in the depths of despair, I had plenty of reasons to give thanks for the God who saves.

The Good News is that even when we run away, God does not abandon us.  Yes, there are consequences for our mistakes, but there is also rescue, forgiveness, and a chance to start again.  What's more, our time in "the belly of the beast" can help us realize just how bad things could have been and just how great God's love for us truly is.  That knowledge can help us come to terms with the way God is calling us to go so that we can begin the process of making things right.

If you currently feel out of your depth or as if life is closing in around you, then I encourage you to hold on.  God will not let you drown.  And though you may need to spend some time contemplating what went wrong, God will never abandon you.  You may not realize it at first, but God may already be delivering you from the ocean depths of despair.  With God to help you, you can find your way back to the realms of air and light.  

So hold tight, hold fast, and trust in God as you reflect on what brought you to this place.  You will get through this.  And there will come a day when you too will be able to sing a song of thanksgiving from the belly of the beast.

 

Prayer

God, I admit that I have made mistakes.  Thank you for always being there to save me and lead me back from the depths of despair towards a better future.  I put my trust in you and vow to live into your will for my life.  Amen.