The God Of The Second Chance.

"And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching I bid thee." -Jonah 3:1-2

For the past several weeks in Sunday school, we've been studying the book of Jonah. It's been a real blessing to me as we've made our way through it, and I've really learned a lot. While reading Dr. J. Vernon McGee's commentary on Jonah I came across these statements he made regarding the first verse of chapter three: " 'And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time'. Our God is the God of the second chance-what a marvelous, wonderful thing that is! God will give you a second chance, and He will give you more than that. I know that he has given me a dozen different chances. He is long-suffering and patient. He is not willing that any should perish. If you are His child, He is going to hold on to you-you may be sure of that."
I jumped right out of my chair and yelled "AMEN!" How true that is; God is the God of the second chance. If it weren't so, all of us would (and by all rights should) be on our way to Hell. But you and I have a second chance (and a third, a fourth, a fifth, etc.). That second chance is Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for our sin. The book of Jonah is a fore-shadowing of Christs death, burial, and resurrection. That is part of the reason it's one of the most scrutinized books of the Bible, that and the fact that Jonah was swallowed by a "great fish" (but I'll write more on that subject in another post). And just like Jonah, after he spent three days in the belly of the fish(three days...where have I heard that before?), was used to bring the Ninevites to salvation, Jesus did the same for you and me. Jesus willingly gave himself over to death to pay for my sins and yours. He gave me a second chance... "Our God is the God of the second chance." What an amazing gift! To know that no matter what I do or how bad I mess up, if I go to God and acknowledge my sins and ask for forgiveness "...he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."(1 John 1:9) In other words, he gives us another chance. You too can have a second chance if you'll accept Christ as your savior and ask him to forgive you of your sins. "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) God has promised salvation to those who'll accept his gift, he's promised you a second chance at life, but this time it'll be eternal life!!! The Ninevites accepted the gift that was given to them, will you?

The Ragged Old Flag

The Ragged Old Flag by Johnny Cash

I walked through a county courthouse square

On a park bench, an old man was sittin' there.

I said, "Your old court house is kinda run down,"

He said, "Naw, it'll do for our little town".

I said, "Your old flag pole is leaned a little bit,

And that's a ragged old flag you got hangin' on it".

He said, "Have a seat", and I sat down,

"Is this the first time you've been to our little town"

I said, "I think it is", He said

"I don't like to brag, but we're kinda proud of That Ragged Old Flag"

"You see, we got a little hole in that flag there,

When Washington took it across the Delaware.

And It got powder burned the night Francis Scott Key sat watching it,

writing "Say Can You See"

It got a rip in New Orleans,

with Packingham & Jackson tugging at its seams.

And It almost fell at the Alamo beside the Texas flag,

But she waved on though.

She got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville,

And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill.

There was Robert E. Lee, Beauregard and Bragg,

And the south wind blew hard on That Ragged Old Flag"

On Flanders Field in World War I,

She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun,

She turned blood red in World War II

She hung limp, and low, a time or two,

She was in Korea, and Vietnam,

She went where she was sent by her Uncle Sam.

She waved from our ships upon the briny foam

and now they've about quit wavin' her back here at home.

In her own good land here She's been abused,

She's been burned, dishonored, denied an' refused,

And the government for which she stands

Has been scandalized throughout out the land.

And she's getting thread bare,

and she's wearin' thin,

But she's in good shape, for the shape she's in.

Cause she's been through the fire before

and I believe she can take a whole lot more."

"So we raise her up every morning

And we bring her down slow every night;

We don't let her touch the ground,

And we fold her up right....

On second thought, I DO like to brag!!

Cause I'm mighty proud of That Ragged Old Flag!!"

I'm proud to be an American, are you?

Patriotism has become something that you just don't see that much of anymore, which is a shame. It seems that it's no longer a popular thing to have pride in you country. People have forgotten that their rights came with a price. They have forgotten the men and women who have fought and died for over 230 years to protect and ensure those rights. Everyone just wants to criticize everything that this country does.....and look where that has gotten us! The country that I love has gotten farther and farther away from the principles it used to stand for and the pride of living in "the land of the free, and the home of the brave" has all but vanished from the public view. Sixty years ago we were welcoming soldiers home from the battlefield; openly showing our gratitude to them for what they had done for us. Now we have to run television commercials to try to encourage people just to shake a vets hand!!!! It's an outrage! I haven't forgotten what they have done. I haven't forgotten that my Grandfather fought in the Pacific during WWII. I haven't forgotten that he was on two different ships that were Kamikazed, causing one to sink. I haven't forgotten that until the day he died he wouldn't talk about the things he saw and did, or the nightmares he had almost every night! I haven't forgotten that my other Grandfather fought in Europe during WWII, along with his brothers. Or my Great-Grandfather who fought in WWI. If my dad wouldn't have been medically discharged from the Marines, he would have gone to Vietnam. I respect those men and women who fought for my freedom; I appreciate it. And it breaks my heart that those soldiers fighting and dieing today get no respect at all from the people of this great land. And make no mistake about it, this country is great; it always has been, and God willing it will continue to be. But that all hinges on a select group of people; the fighting forces of the United States of America. The people who get no respect or gratitude, but who deserve more than we could ever give them. Because your opinion of the politics of this country wouldn't amount to a hill of beans if you didn't have the right to have it and voice it. Those rights come with a price that someone has to pay; that's why we have soldiers. I'm proud to be an American, are you?

The Family Bible

I was reminded of this song on Wednesday night as our Assistant Pastor Jeremiah Williams was preaching. He talked about wanting his children to learn to love God not because it was something forced on them, but because they see what good things God has done in his life. This song talks about the influnece of a parents faith in the life of a child. It's also a reminder of how life used to be in this country, and how it still should be!

Family Bible by Willie Nelson

There's a family Bible on the table

The pages are torn and hard to read

But the family Bible on the table

Will forever be my key to memories

At the end of day when work was over

And when the evening meal was done

Dad would read to us from the family Bible

And we'd count our many blessings one by one

I can see us sittin' round the table

As from the family Bible dad would read

I can hear my mother softly singing

"Rock of ages, Rock of ages cleft for me"

Now this old world of ours is full of trouble

But this old world would oh so better be

If we'd find more Bibles on the tables

And mothers singing "Rock of ages, Rock of ages cleft for me"