Devotion 1: Happy Accidents
Karsen Theede
Everyone who has ever set foot on this earth has made a mistake, broken a rule, or done the wrong thing (Jesus being the one exception). It's a common human experience, no matter where you are from, we have all messed up. Because of this, many famous quotes have come from it: “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new” (Albert Einstein). “To make mistakes is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity” (William Arthur Ward). And my personal favorite, “We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents” (Bob Ross). Our own mistakes can have varying levels of impact or importance in our lives and our plans, but do our mistakes have the same effect on God's plans?
Right now, we are going through the book of Jonah, and this week we are focusing specifically on Chapter 3. “Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, 'Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.' So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, 'Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!' And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.” Jonah 3:1–5
In this passage, Jonah has been freshly spat out of the big fish after three days and three nights, and God comes back to him with the same mission he was tasked with before the fish came along. Jonah was to go to Nineveh to warn them of the destruction coming because of their sin. This time, Jonah does what He was told to do. He travels to Nineveh and shares the words God gave him. When Jonah does this, the city turns from their wicked ways and believes in God. The city is saved from the destruction they faced because they turned from the great sin they were living in. Even though Jonah ran from God and His plan for him, he was still used for God's glory. God didn't choose another man to fill in the role or give up on the city of Nineveh because Jonah didn't listen from the beginning. While our mistakes may change the path we take, they do not stop God's ability to work through us or accomplish His greater plan. God can and will use any situation for His glory, no matter how dire, because I know for a fact that being in the belly of the fish felt like a dire situation.
We are often in the same shoes as Nineveh as well. I have had times in my life that were filled with sin, and very few of my actions were good. Just like with the city of Nineveh, God sends people and situations into the lives of sinners, never giving up on them because of their sins. He pursues us even in our rebellion against Him.