Sign of Jonah

Luke 11: 29 - 32

...no sign shall be given, except the sign of Jonah...

One week of the forty days of Lent has passed. No firm 'resolutions' made. But just continuing to hear and ponder what Jesus says. Today we are told to perceive what the sign of Jonah tells us about our lives. It was easier for the people in Jesus' time to ask for miraculous signs and it still is so today. Who wants prophetic words to be forth-telling; when it would be much more comfortable to ask for for-telling?

The Ninevites recognized God's warning when Jonah spoke to them and they repented. Jonah was God's sign and his message was the message of God for the people of Nineveh. The Queen of Sheba recognized God's wisdom in Solomon.

If only we would hear what we find so difficult to hear.......

This week is less relaxed than I expected. Many errands to do in the daytime and then rushing off to work in the evenings. A few house maintenance problems have cropped up - including a 'moody' wc in which the water sometimes fills up before slowly returning to normal level! Perhaps these mundane hiccups of life are a small part of the Lenten discipline of dying to self - being more open to the daily interruptions of life and even finding gratitude in the midst of the trying events.