The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“Then the Lord said, Doest thou well to be angry?” (Jonah 4:4).

What a situation! Jonah writes about the major situation of his life in four short chapters. In chapter one he is pursued by the Lord. In chapter two he prayed unto the Lord. In chapter three he preached for the Lord. Then in chapter four he pouted to the Lord. He is the only evangelist I have ever heard of who gave a simple message and an entire city responded with repentance. The only problem is that Jonah hated those people of Nineveh. They were the enemies of Israel, and Jonah didn’t want them spared. He confessed that the entire reason he fled was that he knew that the Lord was gracious and merciful. He knew that if the people repented, God would spare them. This made him furious. God simply asked him, “Doest thou well to be angry?” How convicting! While there are right reasons for righteous anger, it must be of very short duration (Ephesians 4:26). It is a great question for each of us when we are angry. Are we doing well by being angry this time?

For today: Are you dealing with any anger situations? If so, are you doing well to be angry?

“Woe to them that devise iniquity, and work evil upon their beds! When the morning is light, they practice it, because it is in the power of their hand” (Micah 2:1).

Shaun was the kind of neighbor that did not attract attention. He was a fairly quiet man who would wave when others waved at him. He was friendly enough but not overly so. He was simply a typical neighbor on Leigh Street. No one could have imagined that he was a wicked man who lived off of burglarizing the homes of seven different villages in the northeast corner of his state. No one could have imagined it until the day came when seven city police squad cars surrounded his house. The police moved in and within two minutes, Shaun was handcuffed and brought out and placed in the back seat of one of the squad cars. The neighbors were stunned. He looked and acted so typical around them. But in reality, he was a wicked man who regularly plotted out his burglaries and other related crimes. The day came when he was sentenced to many years in prison. Millie and her husband, Wayne, used this situation with their children as a great learning tool. He reminded his children that it is never right to plan on doing what is wrong. Good lessons for us as well.

For today: By the grace of God I will depend on Him to help me to please Him.

“Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind” (1 Peter 5:2).

The elderly lady lived alone and always looked forward to listening to the daily radio program of the First Baptist Church. It had been several years since she was able to leave her home due to her serious health problems. Faithfully every evening at 6:25 she would wait to listen to the five minute daily radio program where the pastor of First Baptist Church would read a verse or two of Scripture and speak about how it applied to lives today. The day came when a significant situation developed in her life and she worked up courage to ask the pastor to come to her home. Sharing with him about her situation, the pastor lovingly ministered to her. When it came time for him to leave, she reached for her purse and pulled out her wallet. Before the pastor knew it, she pulled out several twenty dollar bills and tried to pay the pastor for his ministry. “I cannot accept any money from you, dear friend,” he graciously but firmly said. “The church family takes very good care of my family and me. I could never accept your money for me to come and minister to you. In fact, the Bible commands me to serve willingly, not for money that is received dishonestly or at least is questionable,” the pastor continued. He would have a wonderful ministry in her life, but only after she promised him that she would not try and pay him for his service. Wise pastors today will take heed to Peter’s strong admonition in our verse for today.

For today: Pray for your pastor. He needs wisdom in fulfilling his calling.

“Deal with Thy servant according to Thy mercy” (Psalm 119:124).

George is a state trooper and assigned to a very busy stretch of interstate highway. Every day thousands of cars pass back and forth through his territory. One day Barbie was fifteen minutes late for an appointment downtown. George clocked her traveling 78 mph in a 60 mile an hour speed zone. Quickly pulling into the driving lane, George activated his emergency flashing lights and siren. Barbie had the radio so loud that she did not even hear the siren until a moment or two later. Once stopped, George radioed her license plate into headquarters and declared that he had a “10-19 just passed I-400 mile marker 27.” Stepping out of his squad car, he put his hat on and walked up toward Barbie’s car. After a few moments of reviewing her registration and license, he looked at the young lady who was shaking and in tears. He said to her, “Are you all right, ma’am? You’re shaking. Have you ever been stopped by a police officer before?” Collecting herself Barbie replied, “No sir. Never.” The trooper, who was old enough to be her dad, spoke with her in a very stern voice. “You realize that I could arrest you for going so fast, young lady.” Then he smiled and said, “But I’m not going to. I am the recipient of mercy, and today, young lady, you are going to be the recipient of mercy. Mercy is the withholding of what you really do deserve. Now slow down and enjoy my mercy. If I catch you going too fast tomorrow, my mercy may have run out! Have a good day!” and with that he walked back to his squad car thanking the Lord for the mercy that he had received from God’s own good Hand. Barbie didn’t disregard the trooper’s warning. He would spot her car again, and it was often two or three mph under the speed limit. Mercy was effective.

For today: I rejoice in God’s good mercy. It has changed my life.

“So that we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me” (Hebrews 13:6).

Romana and her eleven-year-old niece were seated in the front seat of a row of cars that were slowly ascending to the top of the old wooden roller coaster. For over thirty years Ramona had served as a single lady missionary on the continent of Africa. “Honey, I faced every possible situation on the mission field and always claimed the verse in Hebrews that says, ‘The Lord is my helper and I will not fear,’ but I’ve got to confess that I am scared to death!” Ramona squealed as the coaster crested the summit and plummeted down the tracks. For the next one minute and 38 seconds, Ramona and her niece twisted and turned, shot around corners, climbed summits, flew down the tracks and around the corner into the final station. After getting off the roller coaster, Ramona insisted on sitting down for a few moments. Her eleven-year-old niece Esther laughed saying, “Aunt Ramona, your hair is standing straight in the air!” Both ladies giggled as Ramona stood and straightened herself, thinking to herself, “I have faced wicked tribes, I have killed large snakes, I have squashed scorpions, and I have faced frightening things in my terms as a missionary. Lord, you brought me through all of these and now even today You are my helper on that breathtaking roller coaster my little niece wanted to go on. She was so brave, and I was so scared, but thank you for helping me, Lord.” Do you feel like you are on a roller coaster and need the Lord’s help as well?

For today: Regardless of the circumstances in life, if you know Christ as your Savior, He is your helper. You need not fear what man can do unto you.