Tag Archives: positivity

Jonah, chapters 1-4

“And I said, ‘I have been driven away from your sight!
How will I gaze again upon your holy temple?’”
~Jonah 2:4

As Jonah sank to the depths of the ocean within the belly of the fish, his main concern was not the loss of his own life, his reputation nor material things.
He was not overcome by anxiety to the point of losing his mind or his priorities.
Jonah was deeply grieved because he would no longer be able to gaze upon Jehovah’s temple, the center for true worship.
When we are under great emotional stress, do we value our spiritual privileges above all else? (Ps. 84:10)
We may wonder if our presence before God makes any difference in the vast sea of humanity, but Jonah’s story demonstrates God cares about every one of us at the individual level. (Jon. 4:11)
No one can take any other person’s place before God to render another’s worship. (Matt. 22:37)
In that sense, we are each valuable and irreplaceable. (Jon. 2:9)

Jeremiah, chapters 35-38

“Perhaps when those of the house of Judah hear of all the calamity that I intend to bring on them, they may turn back from their evil ways, so that I may forgive their error and their sin.”
~Jeremiah 36:3

Jehovah God looks to forgive those who have offended him. (Isa. 55:7)
He sees everyone’s heart and does not give up hope that these people can change. (2 Pet. 3:9)
Likewise, we should not hold on to a grudge or seize the opportunity to get even with someone who has offended us. (Ro. 12:17-19)
Nor should we rejoice when they suffer due to their own imperfections or to unrelated circumstances. (Prov. 24:17,18)
However, God’s pardon is not unconditional.
He forgives those who “turn back from their evil ways.”
Since we cannot see what lies in the heart of our fellow man, it is best to leave the judging to God, remaining hopeful that wrongdoers will become spiritually conscious before it is too late.

Nehemiah, chapters 1-4

“As soon as I heard these words, I sat down and began to weep and mourn for days, and I kept fasting and praying before the God of the heavens.”
~Nehemiah 1:4

What were the words that caused the Persian king’s cup-bearer, Nehemiah, so much distress?
“The walls of Jerusalem are broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire,” (Neh. 1:3).
The Jews who had returned to the Holy City to rebuild it were not committing to their mission.
Nehemiah received this sad news in the Jewish month of Chislev (mid-November to mid-December) in what would have been the year 456 b.C.E.
He did not request leave from the king to go to Jerusalem and give fresh impulse to the reconstruction until four months later (Neh. 2:1).
Despite his worries, he “had never been gloomy” in the king’s presence.
From this we can learn two things:
Firstly, if our present circumstances do not allow us to serve Jehovah our God to the extent we desire, we can pray to Him for guidance and ask him to bless our efforts to make better use of our time.
Secondly, until we are able to fix our work or personal circumstances to permit greater service, we can face each day with cheer, knowing that we “do all things for God’s glory,” (1 Cor. 10:31).

2 Samuel, chapters 4-8

And now, O Sovereign Lord Jehovah, you are the true God, and your words are truth, and you have promised these good things to your servant.
~2 Samuel 7:28

King David had asked for the prophet, Nathan’s, blessing in constructing a temple (2 Sam. 7:2,3).

When Jehovah told David through Nathan that it wouldn’t be him, but his son, who would undertake and accomplish that great task, David opted to see the glass half full (2 Sam. 7:12,13,18,19).

He fully trusted God’s promises 100% (2 Sam. 7:21,27).

He knew that, even after his own death, his kingdom would persist because God had spoken it (2 Sam. 7:16).

We, too, need to keep a positive attitude when we fail to accomplish personal goals.

If we cannot serve God in the way we had envisioned ourselves doing so due to health, financial or family circumstances, or even due to personal shortcomings, we can still demonstrate our faith that Jehovah will bless us and our families in the future.

Like David, we can also pray:
“So may it please you to bless the house of your servant, and may it continue forever before you; for you, O Sovereign Lord Jehovah, have promised, and with your blessing may the house of your servant be blessed forever,” (2 Sam. 7:29).