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The World Our Parish, Our Parish The World
Contributed by Joseph Smith on May 14, 2003 (message contributor)
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1. Channeling Anger
Contributed on May 14, 2003
Dramatic monologue: Jonah analyzes the sources of his anger, but prays that God will use all of his misdirected energy for Kingdom purposes.
Hmmph! Blah! Of all the fool things! Repent and be saved! Who would have thought it? Why in the world? I am angry. Yes, I don’t dispute it. I am angry. And why wouldn’t I be, after all I have gone through? I am angry. And with good reason. I went through hell and back, and with what ...read more
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2. How Much Is The Fare To Tarshish?
Contributed on Jun 6, 2003
Jonah refused to go to Tarshish because emotionally he felt unwelcome and theologically he thought he could escape God’s oversight. He paid hidden costs, in vain: the loss of a vessel, the loss of joy, human wreckage, reckoning with eternity.
When I travel, I don’t want to spend too much money on the travel itself. I’d rather spend my money on whatever there is to buy where I’m going. I don’t want to hand much over to the airline or the railroad. I want to travel cheap. But I sometimes miss an important fact – that when I try to ...read more
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3. Swallowed Up Or Spewed Out
Contributed on Jun 6, 2003
God disciplines us when we turn aside from His will: either we get swallowed up in addictive behavior, churchianity, busy-ness, and controversy; or God spews us out as ill-equipped, unreceptive, divisive. Confess our distress, admit our limitations, and
What parent does not dread this awful experience? In your care is a small child. You turn your back for just an instant –to answer the phone, to get a drink of water – and when you come back to that child, she is coughing and choking, clutching at her throat. Those curious eyes saw something ...read more