Sunday Snippets- I am Jonah

We started a new sermon series at church this week on the book of Jonah.  It's another one of those stories you kind of sort of know from Sunday School maybe.  Or Pinocchio.  Or is that just me?

Anyway the sermon this week was FANTASTIC.  They don't have it posted yet, but when they do post it, you can find it here and I highly recommend it.

I took two pages of notes, but here are just a few snippets:

• Rebellion is simply saying NO to God. What area of your life are you saying NO to God in?

• There will always be a ship to Tarshish.  Or in other words, if you are ever even thinking about disobeying or saying no to God, the devil will always make it easy for you because that is exactly what he wants.  

• What if your enemy is laying a trap for you?

• That "peace in your heart" you had over a situation you know is wrong, but you are doing it anyway could be Satan numbing your conscience.

• It starts with small acts of disobedience and goes down to total devastation (this is so true!)

• God sends storms to break His people from self-reliance.

• Jonah is willing to obey God UNTIL it costs him the things he loves and/or fears most.

• Real obedience is when you would give up EVERYTHING to maintain your relationship with HIM.

• He even referenced Daniel when Shadrac, Mishac, and Obedigo (I probably massacred their names) went in to the fiery furnace.  His question to us was- Would you rather be in the flames with God or out of the flames without God????

• The storm is not God's retribution, it's God's restoration.  In other words He didn't send the storm to pay him back, he sent the storm to bring him back.

I am telling you.  You should go listen to is if you get a chance this week.  Just look for the one about Jonah.  It should pop up tomorrow sometime.

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend and were able to spend time with the Lord.  Between this awesome sermon and the Daniel study and a few little things going on, I felt God talking to me all over the place.

If you are looking for a church in the Triangle area, I highly recommend coming to visit during this series.  If last night was any indication of what God is about the teach me...it is going to be awesome.

And if you want to follow along even more, there are lots of study guide resources HERE.