Upgrade

“But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!” And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.” Jonah 2:9-10 (ESV)

Every now and then, my iPhone apps start glitching. This is a clear sign that my phone needs an upgrade. Only after I upgrade my phone, things start working correctly. Most of the time, my upgrades happen at midnight, when I am in deep sleep. I think the engineers chose midnight because most people are not using their phones at the time. Everything stands still and the deep work can take place. 

Jonah needed an upgrade because of disobedience. If you have been following our 40-day journey, you remember that on day 9, we read Psalm 50.

God has kept that Psalm in my mind and heart so I began to dig deep. I learned that Jonah, in the belly of the big fish, prays to the Lord. He uses his own words at first. Then, he uses the words of the psalmist in chapter 50 and he prays: “But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!” 

Then, and only then, the Lord spoke to the fish who immediately vomited Jonah in dry land. 

God can’t use folk who are disobedient. He can’t use folk who are complainers. His word is clear in Psalm 50: “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High.” 

Jonah was a prophet. What God says, prophets do. We, as servants of God, have the same mission. What He says in His Word, we must do. Jonah decided to disobey. There are consequences to that choice. The sea and the sailors felt the consequences to the point they threw Jonah into the sea. There was calm for them but Jonah’s journey continued. 

The psalmist advises us: 

“and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”

Calling Jonah did. God answered Jonah. God is faithful to His word and saved Jonah. The salvation was not for Jonah's comfort. It was to glorify God and for the benefit of 120,000 souls and their animals. 

The same principle applies to us today. We need an upgrade. God can only do His work if we obey Him. 

This no-complaint challenge is a call to obedience. It is a declaration that we are not our own. We were bought with a price. As children of God, we are called to be thankful. 

We can’t conjure up true thanksgiving unless the Lord changes our heart. He wants the content of our heart to be fully His. It was easy for Jonah to hide his disobedience to those sailors. It is easy for you and I to hide the bitterness and unforgiveness we carry. Until the Lord calls you out for who you really are: His beloved daughter in need of His intervention. 

Here’s the good news: a big fish is not going to swallow you. But God can put you in a container until you cry out to Him for help. He will keep you there until you give Him what He requires: complete obedience to the word He has spoken to you already. 

You have one choice today: obey your God.

Prayer: I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. Forgive me for my sin of (tell God what that is). I repent and I am in your capable hands so You can change me. With the voice of thanksgiving, I will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord! In Jesus’ name, Amen.