Three Miracles You Can Expect When You Embrace God’s Mission

by Rick Warren — July 30, 2020

“The sailors were awestruck by the LORD’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him.”

Jonah 1:16 (NLT)

When you embrace God’s mission for your life, miracles happen.

You can see this in the life of Jonah. God told him to warn the people of Nineveh that judgment was near, but Jonah didn’t want to do it. So he ran in the opposite direction and boarded a ship to Tarshish, far away from where God wanted him to be.

In order to get Jonah back on mission, God sent a violent storm to stop the ship. “‘Throw me into the sea,’ Jonah said, ‘and it will become calm again. I know that this terrible storm is all my fault’” (Jonah 1:12 NLT).

When Jonah finally obeyed God, three miracles happened. These same miracles will happen as you embrace God’s mission for your life.

Life calms down. Suddenly there will be peace where there was previously a storm. Storms don’t usually stop immediately, but this one did.

God ended the storm the moment Jonah was tossed into the sea. God has a purpose for the storms you face in life. He may be trying to get your attention. His purpose is always greater than your problem. When you accept God’s mission, he’ll calm the storm sent to get your attention.

Unbelievers will believe. Jonah was on a ship full of people who didn’t believe in God. They were astounded that God stopped the storm when they threw Jonah overboard. And so, “The men were terrified of the Lord. They offered sacrifices and made vows to the Lord” (Jonah 1:16 GW). Because a person who believed in God suddenly went the right way instead of the wrong way, unbelievers believed.

You probably have a friend or relative who isn’t a follower of Jesus. Have you ever thought you might be affecting their willingness to put their trust in Jesus? Maybe your life and your choices are keeping them from coming to Christ. When you finally give 100 percent to God, your loved one will want what you have.

God shows you mercy. The Bible says in Jonah 1:17, “The Lord sent a big fish to swallow Jonah” (GW). That doesn’t sound like mercy, but it was. Jonah lived after being tossed overboard in a storm because God sent a big fish to swallow him up.

Some people think that if they come back and embrace God’s mission, he’ll punish them for all the time they wasted. That’s just not true.

Embracing God’s unique mission for your life is the best decision you can ever make. He wants you to fulfill your mission, so he will welcome you back with open arms.

Miracles will follow.

Talk It Over

  • When have you seen God calm a storm once you obeyed what he’d told you to do?
  • When Jonah was swallowed by a big fish, it turned out to be an act of God’s mercy. Have you seen examples in your life of events you thought were negative, but God was really saving you from something else?
  • Think of the people in your life who aren’t followers of Jesus. How can you pray for them—and how can you more deeply embrace God’s mission for your life?

Give hope, prayer, and encouragement below. Post a comment & talk about it.