8: In the Belly of the Wail

Take My Hand Inspirations

In the Belly of the Wail

Jonah emphatically told God, “No!” and headed for Tarshish (left) instead of Nineveh (right).  His bold defiance to the orders given to Him by his Creator threw Jonah into chilly deep waters almost unto death. . . . until he landed in the belly of the whale.

“The belly of the whale” metaphorically is the deep pit in which you find yourself suffocating as you struggle to push your way out.  For three days and three nights, Jonah lamented, prayed and wailed, wailed, and wailed some more: “I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction . . . out of the belly of Sheol [the deep dark pit] I cried.” (Jonah 2:2) His tears were the dark waters of troubles streaming over the face of his life.  He smelled death in that belly; and men fear death.

You may be face-to-face with death (of your body or your soul or even spiritually) right now.  For the wages [punishment] of sin is death. (Romans 6:23a).  Your jealousy or anger or fear or distrust or gossiping or adultery/fornication or rejection of God’s Word has landed you smacked down flat in the middle of the belly.  And you’re wailing for a way out.  The only way out of the belly is to take a 180 degree turn in the opposite direction of where you are right now. 

Let go of your ego and fear of what others may think of you for wanting to change.  The “others” can’t get you into heaven.  Only Jesus can (Acts 4:12).  And He’s waiting for you at that point where you . . . turn: repent, change, think differently, be and do God’s will in grateful obedience.

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13, NKJV).

Dear Brother, Dear Sister.  You played with the devil’s fire for too long.  Did you think you would never get burned!?!  O.k. now you know.  The devil plays tricks with our emotions (soul) and flesh (body) to get us to think we are invincible like Jonah, defiantly rejecting God’s orders, while, at the same time, inwardly hoping that God would never punish us, His legitimate children.  After all, He is a merciful God who knows how weak we are, right?  Oh, how wrong we, who are not close to the Lord can be about who God, our Father, really is.  Take plenty of time to read and to meditate on Hebrews 12:5-11.

What is true about God, our Father, is that He considers the tears and listens to the prayers of the truly repentant heart as we wail: “My soul is fainted within me, but my prayer goes up to You, into Your holy temple.  With the voice of thanksgiving, I will pay what I have vowed.  Salvation is of the Lord.”  (Jonah 2:7-9, NKJV).  What did you vow to the Lord?  Let me tell you. Upon receiving Him as your Lord and Savior, you vowed your life, a life dedicated and holy unto the Lord (Romans 12:1-2).  And look at what you are doing with your life right now.

But with the temptation that has landed you in this belly, God has made the way of escape and you will be able to bear it.  Just like Jonah, you will be chastised, but in a way you can handle.  And after the chastisement is over (how long it takes is based on how long it takes you to truly repent), you will definitely rejoice: “And You heard my voice. And You answered me.” 

“So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.” (Jonah 2:10)  Your way of escape is closer and sooner than you think. 

YOUR WAY OF ESCAPE could be :

     A.     You must stop masturbating and embrace sports or other healthy hobbies or take on a challenging new course that brings out the genius or creativity in you. 

      B.     You must give that husband back to his wife (or that wife back to her husband) and patiently wait for Mr. or Miss Right to come into your heart. 

      C.     You must simply shatter that boozing bottle once and for all; or switch off all pornographic paraphernalia; and pick up a book (perhaps the Bible?), film or audiotape about the power of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, to help you overcome humanity’s sinful nature. 

      D.     You must cease all unholy relationships, attachments, affiliations (unequal yokes dangling, strangling your neck), and pursue what is the will of God for your life.

And that relationship you’re in with the same-sex partner?  Are you at perfect peace in it?  Do you feel whole, complete, satisfied, fulfilled? Pure love can be shared without the pursuit of lascivious lustful satisfaction.  Sex was not meant to be an extension of carnality.  Biblical love is only found in the union of one man and one woman in holy matrimony. This is the only kind of relationship that births the only true, complete, life-fulfilling love expressed in the Word of God. But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23b, NKJV).

DON’T YOU WANT VICTORY OVER DEATH, HELL AND THE GRAVE, THAT OLD BLOATED BELLY?

“So the Lord spoke to the fish.  You have prayed and wailed long enough.  Now give thanks to the Lord for hearing you and allow Jesus to speak to your problem.  Trust and obey, for there’s no other way (of escape). 

© 2017 by Take My Hand Inspirations, a division of PepParadise Society Ltd.  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—without the prior written permission of the publisher.  The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

Most  Artwork for this blog can be found on the Black Art search engine.

Take My Hand Inspirations