Today's Devotion -- Jonah 3:6-9
6 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 7 Then he issued a proclamation in Nineveh:
"By the decree of the king and his nobles:
Do not let any man or beast, herd or flock, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. 9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish." (NIV)
taken from www.biblegateway.com
I don't have any idea how large Ninevah was, but imagine it was the size of Florissant. It's amazing to see the results of Jonah's prophesy. It took three days for Jonah to deliver his message, and everyone responded!
Without newspapers, cell phones, television, or radio, all heard the message. And what's even more amazing, all responded by fasting and wearing sackcloths. These were bag-like garments made of a rough, course cloth (think burlap) -- very uncomfortable and worn as a symbol of mourning or repentance (imagine trying to get your teenage daughter to wear that!).
Ninevah was a pagan city, full of idol worshippers and evil-doers. Yet every one of them turned and repented almost immediately when they heard the message of impending destruction.
How do you think that would work in today's world? Even if we just look at our local population, do you think that ALL people would be willing to fast because they thought the world would end in forty days? How many of us spent a day fasting in response to Steve's request?
I'm not sure we could even get everyone to eat ice cream for dessert on the same day if our mayor, or even the president, insisted it would save us!
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