Guess what Jonah chapter 2 verse 8 says…
Welcome to "Joni and Friends" and I'm Joni Eareckson Tada, and what’s the big deal about Jonah Chapter 2, verse 8? Well, my girlfriend Diana put it in an email to me the other day. And this is what it says: “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.” I did not recall that verse, so I looked it up right away and, yep, that’s exactly what it says. And Diana went on to explain why that verse has meant so much to her…
You see, I first met Diana in 10th grade biology class (yes, we go back that far). She was my lab mate and I had the joy of sitting next to her – Diana was a strong believer, even back then, and I loved this women’s (or I should say back then she was a girl) her enthusiastic embrace of life. The only problem was, Diana was overweight – even back then as a 15-year-old. Bless her heart, even after the diving accident in which I became paralyzed, shortly after high school graduation… even after that, Diana was a friend who stood right by me, helping, encouraging, reading the Bible to me, answering my tough questions… she even took off a year of college to help me through that first twelve months in the hospital. And during that time, she still struggled with a weight problem.
But now? Well, Diana and I are in our early 60’s… and she figured, it was about time to change. In that email she wrote me, “All my life I have clung tenaciously to the ‘worthless idol’ of food addiction to temporarily soothe all of the pains, disappointments and stresses of my life. It is a false idol and I have found that depending on it for comfort and happiness only leads to failure, discouragement, limited quality of life and ultimately a shortened life span. So what happened that has allowed me to change…to interrupt the course of my life, to be restored to health and experience true happiness? I stopped resisting the grace and power that God had been freely offering to me all along. I came to grips with the utter helplessness and hopelessness of my situation and completely surrendered to the God who loves me and who desires to give me access to His limitless strength to overcome any obstacle….any addiction…if I would just choose to cooperate with Him and receive ‘the grace that could be mine.’”
Well, Diana has lost over 90 lbs… and she’s got another 50 or so to go. She told me it’s quite something to begin to feel parts of her body that had been hidden for decades – hip bones and a collar bone… she’s even walking briskly every morning (something that her weight prevented her from doing for so many years). And what has inspired her? Jonah chapter 2, verse 8.
You see, every day, you and I forfeit grace that could be ours. It’s there for the receiving; it could be yours: strength, power, the ability to make decisions and stick with them. Grace could be yours, but we forfeit it when we cling, clutch, hold on to idols: the idol of food… the idol of alcohol… TV, computer games, sports, certainly the idol of certain relationships. When we loosen our grip around these things and release them (stop clinging to them), God then pours out grace – grace to keep us from grabbing them back and pressing them against our hearts.
Listen to more of Jonah chapter 2, for it says, “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you.” Yes, the Bible makes a big deal about getting rid of the idols in our lives… and when we do, grace and change is ours. And Diana, at age 62, would say it’s never too late to change.
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