People Over Plants (Jon 4:9-11) by Benjamin Monson

09 Oct People Over Plants (Jon 4:9-11) by Benjamin Monson

Welcome God now with this LIFE Group Devotion (FB), provided by LIFE Runners (FB).  Leaders.  Guest Authors.
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“But God said to Jonah, ‘Have you reason to be angry over the plant?’  ‘I have reason to be angry,’ Jonah answered, ‘angry enough to die.’  Then the LORD said, ‘You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor and which you did not raise; it came up in one night and in one night it perished.  And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left, not to mention the many cattle?'” ~ (Jon 4:9-11) (full readings)
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Benjamin’s Reflections:  I have a handful of friends who have thumbs so green they could quit their jobs and become professional horticulturists.  But I’ve never witnessed the kind of anguish shown over a dying plant like that of the prophet Jonah.  After the temper-tantrum, God quickly points out to the prophet that he’s showing more care for one plant, that he didn’t even help grow, than for over 120,000 humans who were formed in the womb by God.  I’m assuming none of us have thrown a fit over a plant, but I wonder how often we have shown more concern for some trivial matter than for the nearly 4,000 babies who are killed through abortion every day in America.  Never forget that God is passionate about people and that Satan loves to help us become entangled in the affairs of this world while continuing to kill future preachers, evangelists, prophets, teachers and more.  One last thing about this story is that God refers to the Ninevites as people who “cannot distinguish their right hand from their left.”  Did they literally not know right from left?  I think its obvious that God referred to them this way because they were so lost, so blinded by sin, that it was as if they couldn’t tell the difference.  This is how He wants us to view women and men who are considering aborting their children.  This perspective will help us have compassion on them the way God desired Jonah to have compassion on the Ninevites.
* Benjamin Monson works as the Senior Graphic Artist at the Rock Church in San Diego, CA.  He also serves on the board of Save The Storks and is their lead graphic designer.  Benjamin and his wife have two children and a third on the way.
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Faith Challenge:  Actively seek how you can participate in the fight against abortion and adjust your thoughts to start believing that it really can come to an end.  Regularly intercede for those considering abortion and for the babies whose lives hang in the balance.
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Counter-Culture News:  LifeSiteNews, LifeNews, American Family, Vatican, Project Rachel.
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Our Prayers:  Pray LIFE Runners Creed to end abortion.  Add Prayers. Pray with meals, bedtime, wake up, unceasingly. Consider mid-week Family Rosary (17 min). Let’s pray now.
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Feast Day:  Blessed John Henry Newman.
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Faith Quote:  “We took the word ‘fetus,’ which is the Latin word for ‘offspring,’ and redefined it to dehumanize the unborn.  In doing so, we were able to assert that, in the issue of abortion, there is only one person’s human rights to consider.” ~ Kris Vallotton
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Through Christ Our Lord,
Benjamin
1 John 3:8b