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The Ursula Parish
Mission
1st
Wednesday of Lent
February 20, 2013
THE STORY OF JONAH ++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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God says GO! Jonah says NO!
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God sends a storm to remind Jonah who’s in
charge
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Jonah is thrown overboard by the others
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He makes the choice to keep running from God
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And you know what happens when Jonah is thrown
overboard—slurp—swallowed by the big fish
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We don’t know what happens—we just know he was
in its belly for 3 days
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The fish spits him up & finally Jonah’s able
to say
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“I’ll do
what I promised I’d do! Salvation belongs to God”
A STORY ABOUT US ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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This isn’t just Jonah’s story
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This is the story of any one of us who has tried
to run from God at any particular time
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I certainly have
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Jonah isn’t the only one whose plans are interrupted
by God
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It about our plans being interrupted by God
APPLICATION +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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How many times have we experienced a storm in our
life and have come to a new realization, like Jonah?
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And when the ugly circumstances of life finally
throw us up on solid ground, we can almost hear God say, "Wake up! You can make a new choice, one that leads to life!"
CONCLUSION
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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We have indeed been called by God
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The call may be as simple as moving in a new
direction
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Deepening our trust and faith in God
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It may be growing in mercy and forgiveness
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Or the call may be to renew a commitment in a
relationship or respond to a ministry in my parish
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Whatever God has called us to, God will not set us
up to fail
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Jonah is a great example of how God’s will is
accomplished often in spite of his human agents
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It just takes us a long to finally get it!
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