Monday Morning Manna: Least Likely Obedience

Have you ever known anyone who gave every appearance that they could make it on their own, without any need to obey an authority or set of regulations? Sometimes it is the least likely, who obey. When God called Jonah, there were a series of disobediences. Jonah went to Joppa rather then to Nineveh. He went down into a small ship, rather than going up to a great city. He went with sailors to Tarshish rather than going in the presence of the Lord. So where does one find obedience in this story – in the least likely place. “The Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah” (Jonah 1:17), then “commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah up onto the dry land.” (Jonah 2:10). Twice, the fish obeyed the Lord. I know. You might be thinking, “this is a fishy story,” but sometimes, the ones who appear to be the most self-assured, self-appointed, self-confident, will disobey, while the least likely will obey. Do you find yourself somewhere in this story?

Dr. Dan Crawford, Senior Professor at Southwestern Baptist Seminary, is the WestCoast Baptist Association’s Spiritual Life & Leadership Mentor. Follow Dan on Twitter @DrDanRC and Facebook www.facebook.com/dan.crawford.