“Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.”  

Jonah 2:8

I love the story of Jonah for a myriad of reasons.  It is a memorable story to start with, but what I am drawn to is the greatest revival the world, at that time, had ever experienced.  Over 120,000 people turned to God and avoided judgment.  The most amazing thing about the whole story though is that Jonah did not once tell the people to repent.  Not one time.  For three days, he walked through Nineveh proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”  Essentially, he said it is over!  See ya!  But the people heard him.  They believed the word of the Lord.  They aligned themselves with God by turning from their ways and turning to God.  God then revoked His sentence and showed them mercy.  They did not cling to worthless idols and in turn found God’s grace.  Those that cling forfeit God’s grace.

No one can walk in love, joy, peace, prosperity, health, the things of God until we destroy the image of self, lack, poverty, and sickness.  The wrong image is only replaced through the truth of the living Word.  We see a reflection of our self in everyone we know.  People are often negative towards others because they’re negative towards themselves.  Most cannot even see what they are doing.  We project our value on others by bubbling out in all our forms of communication – over 70% does not even use words.  This can be the posture you take around someone, or ignoring them, etc.  The whole time it is actually a dose of what we think of ourselves.  There is nothing wrong with this unless what you see is not what God sees – the truth.  If you see what the world, devil, or in-laws see – a lie, then you are in trouble.  Out of order, out of balance, and clinging to worthless idols.  Any beliefs you place over and before what God says is an idol and steals His grace from your life.  We must align ourselves with God and quit forfeiting His powerful Grace.

Different segments of the church will cry for revival at different times.  They are expecting God to move and release revival like the days of old.  They expect God to move.  The reality, and history proves this out, revival comes when people change – not God.  God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  He doesn’t need to change and He isn’t going to change.

Let’s look at Jonah’s stomping grounds and what took place at Nineveh.  The message wasn’t to repent.  The message was you have 40 days and Nineveh will be no more, but when the king heard this he gave a decree to fast, turn from their evil ways, and pray.  Jonah 3:10 says:

“When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.”

Do you see it?  They changed.  They aligned themselves with God.  It goes on to say that Nineveh’s population was 120,000.  That is quite a revival!

Throughout history you will see people, by God’s grace, discover a revelation into His word that was there before.  All that changed was people finally saw it, then they aligned themselves with God’s truth.  It happened in the 1700s with the Great Awakening in the American colonies where George Whitefield drew incredible crowds preaching salvation freely offered in the Gospel, saying at the end of his sermons: “Come poor, lost, undone sinner, come just as you are to Christ.”

Revival only comes through alignment with God.  All revivals start with people aligning themselves with God’s truth.  Not one started with some outpouring of the Spirit like raindrops falling out of the sky that you have no control over.  God meets you where you’re at and then calls you to follow Him – Align yourself with what He is doing.  Remember the children of Israel were told that they had to dispossess their enemies before they could possess the land (Numbers 33:53).  We, like them, have some work to do.

I encourage you to align yourself with His truths.  I’m sure you are like me (not perfect) and have a couple of truths come to mind that you’re not quite aligned with.  Today is the day to let truth win by aligning yourself with Him.  It is the greatest deal in the world.  You will walk in love, joy, and peace finding life that seemed to evade your best laid plans.  Align yourself and witness a true revival that will begin right inside of you.

Thanks for taking the time to read.  I’d love to hear your comments and feel free to share with those that would be encouraged too.