Jonah 2:6

Jonah 2:6 says, I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God.  Jonah was in about as hopeless a situation as a person could be.  He felt the whole world was bearing down on him.  Still, even in his situation, he said his Lord and His God had brought him up from corruption.  When we find ourselves in a seemingly hopeless situation in this world, do we acknowledge that God has already delivered us from corruption, no matter the outcome.  Remember, Jonah was still in the belly of the whale at this time.  We, as followers of Christ, need to realize that we are everlasting delivered already and to thank God for that daily.  Verse seven adds, When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple. Jonah could in no way rely on his own ability to save himself, so he prayed to God.  We can never save ourselves today, but if we are followers of Christ, we have already come to understand that.  If we aren't, until we come to understand that, then nothing else matters. As followers of Christ, if we are out of His will, then we need to turn to Him again, and hopefully we will do it before we are brought as low as Jonah was.  Remember, he was still one of God's chosen people. Verse eight continues, They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.  If we believe that there is any way we can save ourselves, then we are believing lying vanities.  There are those today who claim they do not need God's forgiveness but rely on their own ability to forgive and thereby save themselves, but in so doing, they cut themselves off from the mercy of God.  Verse nine states, But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.  Jonah acknowledged that salvation was only from the Lord.  He would sacrifice to God with thanksgiving and do what he had vowed to do.  We today need to acknowledge that Christ is the only way to salvation and serve Him with thanksgiving.  Verse ten adds, And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.  Jonah's prayers were answered, and he was returned to dry ground.  He still had the same mission.  We today, when we are restored to God, still have the mission of proclaiming His word.