The Voice Of Jonah, The Silence Of Lot

By the voice of a backslidden prophet a wicked city was spared judgment. By the silence of a righteous man two other cities were destroyed. The call to the Body of Christ in these last days is to be a VOICE that can be heard. The Bridegroom is wanting to partner with the Bride in bringing the harvest into the Kingdom before judgment. If we don't tell others about Yeshua we will by our silence damn millions to eternity without God.

By Chris McDonald

Jonah 3:1-3  - And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, [2] Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. [3] So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey. And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.  [5] So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. [6] For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
 

2 Peter 2:6-8 -  And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; [7] And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: [8] (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

Time is running short. As I write this journal the Middle East is a powder keg waiting to explode. At the same time wicked men continue to plot the establishment of a one-world government which in their eyes will make us "safer," "more efficient," and "environmentally sound." In reality, it is the springboard upon which the coming Anti-Christ will soon make his debut and seek to control the entire world. He will be from Syria more than likely and a Jew. Israel will be deceived into signing a seven-year peace treaty with him and accept him as their long-awaited Messiah. A recent New York Times news article (just a few days ago from the writing of this -January 21) reported that even the Vatican in Rome has given its blessing upon the Jews search for their Messiah calling it a "credible hope," and saying that when the Jews find their Messiah this person will more than likely solve the entirety of the world's problems.

        We don't have much time folks. Souls are dying, men are crying and the only hope for lost humanity is the gospel of the Lord Jesus, Yeshuah, the REAL JEWISH Messiah who died on a bloody tree so long ago and gave His life that we might have eternal life. He came so that we would have LIFE and have it more abundantly. He came to set man free from sin that separates man from God eternally because of sin's penalty - DEATH. This death is not just a physical death but a spiritual one. Those who chose to sin and refuse to repent and come to Yeshuah will end up in a place of torment called Hell. Hell is the abode of the wicked who reject God. It's a place of unrelenting torment, a place of fire and flames, where the worm dies not and the thirst of man is never quenched. If we could peel back the curtain for just 10 seconds, I firmly believe that there is no one reading this journal who would be the same. Hell is real just like heaven is real. Jesus spoke more about hell than He did heaven in His earthly ministry. The souls in hell right now will be there for ever and for ever. The only time they will ever get a reprieve will be when God judges sinful man at the Great White Throne judgment and death and "hell" will give up its dead. This march will not be one of joy for death and hell will then be cast in the lake of fire where the torment of man will come up before the Lamb and the saints forever and ever. Just 10 seconds would change most churches! Just 10 seconds to take a peek into the spirit realm of Hades would change US! Just 10 seconds would change the way we talk, the way we live, the way we spend our money, the way we entertain ourselves, the way we conduct business on Sunday. Oh neighbor, just 10 seconds, just a glance into the eternal abyss of torment would bring us together quickly in the Body of Christ. I can guarantee the Baptists would no longer be at odds with the Methodists and Pentecostals. Pentecostals would no longer be at odds with the Charismatics. The Catholics would no longer be at odds with the Protestants. NO NO NO!

        Just 10 seconds is all it would take to see the tormented souls in the pit, to hear the screams of those who have rejected God. To feel the pain and agony of those in the pit. To hear Judas cry over the 30 pieces of silver; to hear Saul moan over the missed chances to be a king of honor and integrity before God; to hear Esau mourn over the choices he made concerning his birthright and blessing; to hear the Hitlers, the Hamans, the Herods; the wicked, the vile, the drug addicts, the prostitutes. To hear the religious cry out in terror because they thought they were saved and on their way to heaven only to close their eyes in death on Earth and open them in their worst nightmare in the regions of the damned. OH NEIGHBOR. The people in hell don't care about the color of our carpet in our churches or the choir robes. The people in hell don't care about how many funds we have in the building account. The people in hell don't care about the church league softball standings or the basketball standings. They don't care about the pizza parties we throw our youth to keep them from being bored with church. Dear God help us in this hour to get a glimpse of eternity that will so shake us to our core that EVERYTHING WE DO, everything we say, everywhere we go will mean something to a lost soul who needs God. I'm having a hard time writing right now. I feel the Holy Ghost so powerful at this second. Just 10 seconds Lord, just 10 seconds. Give us all a glimpse of eternity without You if that is what it will take to shake YOUR CHURCH Lord into its senses in these final ticking moments before the curtain does come down for real.

        I want to look at two men in the Bible who were in the middle of two different situations - Lot and Jonah. Lot, the nephew of Abraham, separated himself from his uncle after a strife arose among them. As a result, Lot planted his possessions in the plain of Sodom where the Bible says the men were "exceedingly wicked and sinners before the Lord." The text we have at the top of this journal also states that Lot himself was a "righteous man." In other words, under the Old Covenant economy, Lot was saved! Lot was born again. Lot believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But he chose to put his tent in the middle of the most vilest, wicked, corrupt place he could ever chose to settle - SODOM.

        Then there was Jonah. Jonah was a prophet, called by God to go to Nineveh to "cry out" against the wickedness of Nineveh. Yet when Jonah received this call, instead of obeying God, HE RAN from the presence of the Lord and backslid. As a result, God sent a storm as Jonah fled to Tarshish in a boat. Heathen mariners began to pray and cast lots and the LOT FELL ON JONAH. When you're away from God, the LOT ALWAYS falls on you! It's a horrible place to be to have a call of God on your life and you're running. And Jonah was running when heathen mariners throw him off the boat he was fleeing in and in the process of time a whale swallows Jonah. He dies and winds up in the pit - SHEOL, the place of departed spirits. He literally died and his spirit went to hell. In hell, Jonah cried out, repented, and the mercy of God was given to Jonah as God gave him a second chance to go back to Nineveh. Jonah obeyed the second time, went to NINEVEH and PREACHED. His voice was heard in the streets. As a result the entire city repented in sackcloth and ashes and God's judgment was delayed for nearly 100 years on the wickedest city on the face of the earth at that time. Let this sink in - a righteous man in Sodom was not able to save Sodom and Gomorrah from judgment even though he was righteous. A backslidden prophet was able to save another city decreed for judgment even though he himself was not right before the Lord and wound up getting angry at the Lord for sparing the wicked. The silence of Lot caused Sodom to perish, the voice of Jonah saved Nineveh.

The Silence Of Lot

        I'm not going to get into all the details of the demise of Sodom and Gomorrah. That will be another journal for another time. I will say here though that anyone who knows anything about their Bible knows the reasons God poured out His wrath upon those cities. The sin of homosexuality was so grievous that the Lord burned the two cities to the ground. There are NO TRACES of either city to be found today. Some commentators say that the reason God brought such a massive judgment is that the sin in these cities had become so bad it threatened to destroy the entire civilization around them had the Lord not intervened when He did. I can't help but wander where America stands right now in this same equation. The horrible part of our sin in America is we do what we do AGAINST LIGHT. Lot was the only light in Sodom. Sodom did not have a Bible. Sodom did not have 100 churches on every corner. Sodom did not have Christian television networks pumping in religious programming every second of every single day of every single month of every single year. Sodom did not have a prophet among it declaring that if it did not repent of its sins judgment would soon fall. AMERICA HAS MILLIONS of Bibles. America has thousands of churches. Every American citizen outside a few exceptions has a television set that gives them ample opportunity to receive gospel teaching and preaching.

        No, all Sodom had was LOT - a righteous man with his two daughters and wife - WHO REMAINED SILENT! Lot's witness to Sodom was his life - or at least he thought it was. I've heard this "curt" statement very often behind pulpits that "our lives are the only Bible most people will ever read." That may be true - BUT IF WE AS THE AMERICAN CHURCH KEEP SILENT ABOUT THE TRUTH then our nation is going to perish. I understand totally that our words will only mean something if the example of our lives back up what we are saying. I also believe though that we can go around doing all our religious activity and piousness till we're gray headed and in wheel chairs and if we don't SPEAK UP and give a bold witness for Jesus with our MOUTH - "Sodom," will perish. Lot was a righteous man, but his family perished because of his silence. Lot was a righteous man, but the nation perished. The church can say "we're righteous" but if we remain silent - the nation will perish!

        Why Was Lot Silent?

        I'm not an expert nor was I there with Lot when he was settled in Sodom. But through reading the account of his life we can surmise that Lot's righteousness was solely based on God's mercy - not on Lot's condition. He "vexed" his soul daily with those around him. The atmosphere of Sodom caused Lot to lose influence of those around him. While losing influence, he also lost respect at home. When push came to shove and the command of the Lord came to leave Sodom and not look back, Lot was not able to convince his own wife to obey God. That speaks volumes of the type man Lot was, yet the Bible called him righteous. I almost wonder if maybe Lot's problem had more to do with an attitude of "self-righteousness," than him just being timid and scared. to speak. Whatever the case, Lot's influence in Sodom did not save those around him. The Sodomites did not hear one word of warning from Lot's mouth when the angels came and warned him that judgment was coming to Sodom. GET THAT IN YOUR HEART right now. When warning came, Lot kept his mouth shut. Yes, he was saved and his daughters with him, but he lost his wife and eventually the sinfulness of Sodom came home to roost when his daughters committed incest with him later. The result of that incest were the Moabites and the Ammonites - bitter enemies of Israel to this day!

        Secondly, not only was Lot silent because his soul was vexed, he was silent because he evidently didn't find the ungodliness that offensive or he would have left Sodom. Yet, again, the Bible called him "righteous."

        In bringing that into modern times, the church is in the same boat Lot is in. We have lost our influence in society. We have lost the ability to speak the true word of God. The prophetic voice of the Lord has been silenced in most church organizations because of unbelief, ignorance and in some extreme sad cases - arrogance and pride. Some denominations actively fight against anything related to prophetic unction and preaching which is even worse. Ignorance will cause us to perish. Fighting against the Holy Spirit and the voice of Yeshuah through his prophets is just plain suicide and STUPID! As Leonard Ravenhill wrote a few years before he died, "Preacher, with all your getting, GET UNCTION!" That unction will set captives free and allow you to HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD that you have been called to DECLARE to a wicked and sinful generation and nation. Lot received the warning yet there is NO WHERE IN SCRIPTURE WHERE HE WARNED A SINGLE SOUL IN SODOM THAT JUDGMENT WAS COMING!

        It's Time To Speak

        There is a great need right now for the Church of the Lord Jesus to hear from HIM and speak what He is saying right now. We need to HEAR what the Spirit is saying to the Church and then declare that to the world. Time is short friend. Judgment is coming. Judgment is about to fall on a nation that has been given so much yet we have sinned so grievously. And if the church is silent, then where will America get its warning from? The television? Hollywood? Our government? Don't count on it. THE VOICE THE LORD HAS PLACED ON PLANET EARTH TOWARD THE WICKED IS THE CHURCH! And if we remain silent as Lot did, it will not matter how righteous we are - nations will perish.

        The church has for too long tried to silence the prophetic voice. The attacks on those gifted in the prophetic voice are attacks on God. The supernatural workings of the Holy Spirit were meant to be life to the church. If we continue to keep God's voice out of our midst, then the voice of Satan will take over. Satan is all to willing to replace the voice of God with his own voice along with those of many others. Friend, the time for the prophetic voice of the Lord to be heard in our land is NOW. If we're not going to allow it now, then WHEN? And if we as a people are not going to hear from God, then WHO IS? The world? Don't count on it. But I will say this - if the church of the Lord Jesus continues to fight the supernatural utterances of the Holy Spirit, then the Lord will go out and find those who won't fight those utterances and He will begin to SPEAK! This is the hour we must HEAR from heaven and KNOW what direction we have been called. And any voice that is telling us to give up our lives for the sake of the gospel - there's a great chance that voice is coming from heaven! Oh neighbor, we have HEARD the Macedonia call today - SEND THE LIGHT, SEND THE LIGHT! There are souls to rescue, there are souls to save, - SEND THE LIGHT, SEND THE LIGHT. Send the Light; the blessed gospel LIGHT, let it shine, from shore to shore. Send the light, the blessed gospel light, let it shine forevermore! Glory to God. Glory to God. It's time to speak up church. It's time to declare that the time of the Kingdom of God is at hand. It's time to declare the word of the Lord to a sleeping nation that is ripening up rapidly for judgment. It's time to declare THUS SAITH THE LORD like we've never declared it. Had Lot spoken up and warned the sinners of Sodom about the coming wrath things would have been different! He may have been righteous, but his silenced DAMNED two cities!

The Voice Of Jonah

Jonah 3:1-10  - And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, [2] Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. [3] So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey. [4] And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.  [5] So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. [6] For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. [7] And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water: [8] But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. [9] Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?  [10] And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.
 

        Jonah on the other hand was not so righteous. He was running. He was backslidden. But when he got right with the Lord, he DIDN'T stay silent - he CRIED and said, "REPENT!" He gave Nineveh 40 days to repent or she would be destroyed. Jesus would later declare that as "Jonah was three nights and three days in the belly of the whale, so would the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Jonah was a type of Christ. Jesus gave Israel 40 years to repent of her unbelief and in A.D. 70 Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman Emperor Titus. The temple, the pride of Judaism, was totally destroyed. Jonah - 40 days - Jesus - 40 years. When Nineveh HEARD THE WORD OF JONAH, they repented, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from the king to the lowest of their society.

        I can't help but wonder that with all the gospel preaching America has heard for nearly 200 years of her history how much longer the Lord will allow the VOICE of the church to speak before He brings Judgment. Israel heard the VOICE OF JESUS, the one whom Jonah was a type of, and yet she hardened her heart. America has hardened her heart.

        On January 22, 2002, we commemorated the 29th anniversary of Roe V. Wade, one of the largest landmark decisions concerning abortion ever in this nation. It opened the door for the bloodletting of untold millions of unnamed and unwanted babies being ripped out of the wombs of selfish mothers all over this country. I was sickened to hear the "pro-choice" spokesman get on television just two days ago and demean our President for his stand against abortion. She said that the reason Roe V. Wade's continued legal status is so important is that women can have "safe" abortions under the law. Friend, let me tell you - abortion is murder and the ultimate act of selfishness in the heart of a mother. The selfishness of the modern feminist movements does not need to have a safe haven. If a woman chooses to disobey God and kill her baby they should come under whatever consequences they meet. God is love but He HURTS DEEPLY over the loss of every single fetus that is ever lost through this horrible act of murder. We can pound our chest all we want to and declare we are going to rid the world of terrorism but we had better first rid our own country of the innocent blood that we are going to be held accountable for in the future. Actually, America is already paying a price for this we're just too arrogant and prideful to admit it. And the church's voice has grown silent over the years condemning this awful act. IT'S TIME TO SPEAK MAN OF GOD!!!!!!!

        January 21, 2002 also marked the 60th anniversary of the beginning and approval of Hitler's final "solution," at the Wannasee Conference in Berlin, Germany. Nearly 6 million Jewish people were systematically slaughtered by the Germans at the demand of the Third Reich in the name of racial purity. While this went on, the United States of America, along with the rest of the world stood by and let it happen without raising as much as a pinky to stop it. Friend, don't think the Lord has forgotten this. Don't think the blood of six million Jews doesn't cry out to Him. No, not every person killed in the Holocaust was saved and went to heaven. Many, sad to say, perished in agony, and as a result of not knowing Yeshuah, went into eternal agony upon their extermination. But despite that, the Jewish race is God's CHOSEN people. As I heard precious Nita Johnson say in a recent interview with Sid Roth concerning America's date with judgment and Anti-Semitism "they have a special place in the heart of God." I don't even remotely try to second guess the Lord on this - He's the one who declares that. And whenever a nation or a group of people come against His chosen - no matter where Israel is with Him spiritually - that nation or group of people sign their own death warrant. Even the nations God raised up to punish Israel paid for their treatment of Israel later! And the blood of six million is going to be held in account when judgment finally falls on America. God has not forgotten! And yet the Gentile church in America remains SILENT over the Anti-Semitism and bigotry among its members. It's TIME TO SPEAK MAN OF GOD!!!!!!

        My stepdaughters and I watched the movie "Pearl Harbor" the other night. The country in 1941 was rollicking and playing games prior to that fateful day of December 7th. They weren't playing AFTER December 7th. Japan's surprise attack brought us into World War II and got our heads and hearts out of the sand of thinking the world would just "go away" if we let it.

        Prior to last September's terrorist attack, America had reached a point of playing games as well. We were divided in our governments and among our fellow man. Many politicians were arguing and fighting while a rising tide of  anti-Semitic and anti-Christian anger was on the rise.  That all stopped on September 11, 2001! At least for a season. The sad thing is we've gotten back to our old ways. The church has also found its way back to normal, boring Sunday services without a fervency of spirit to touch God's heart with our tears and intercession for our nation.  I just don't know though what it's going to take to get us to respond to God totally - and not just for a short season following a tragedy. If the loss of 4,000 don't do it - what will it take? Four million? 400 Million? The enemy has decreed destruction against America and America's only hope of not perishing is repentance. It's going to take the same type of repentance that Nineveh experienced so many centuries ago at the PREACHING of Jonah.

        Sadly, the church is preaching everything BUT THE MESSAGE OF REPENTANCE and the CROSS OF JESUS, which is the only true source of repentance and life! If America goes down as Sodom and Gomorrah did, I cannot help but feel that it will be because we were silent like Lot. Oh we have bragged about our "religious" status with God, but we have not "CRIED IN THE STREETS" like Jonah.

        The Church Is Not Preaching The Gospel

        The Church is not preaching the Gospel. If we were preaching the gospel, society as a whole would be changing. Don't get led astray by the boastings and bragging of most churches. Don't be led astray and think that the message you are hearing on Sunday morning is the gospel just because everyone is applauding the preacher. PREACHER, WHEN PEOPLE TELL YOU THEY ENJOY YOUR SERMON IT'S NOT A COMPLIMENT! IF YOU WERE PREACHING THE TRUE UNADULTERATED WORD OF GOD PEOPLE WOULD NOT BE PATTING YOU ON THE BACK! We're preaching money, education, humanistic psychology, etc. BUT WE ARE NOT PREACHING THE GOSPEL! The Gospel is JESUS CHRIST AND HIM CRUCIFIED!

1 Cor. 2:2-4  - For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. [3] And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. [4] And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:
 

1 Cor. 1:23  - But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

     The Pentecostal world is preaching humanism through psychology; the Charismatic world is preaching money; the Denominational world is preaching unbelief. And all the talk you hear about "REVIVAL" is just that - TALK. If America was experiencing revival we'd be in sackcloth and ashes crying out to God to change our condition. A minister once said that "we cannot have Revival until first of all we have a Reformation." In other words, how can the church have revival that is changing hearts when we're not preaching a gospel that calls for change?? Oh neighbor are you hearing what I am saying to you? I don't care the title on the door of the church. Some of our churches be them Pentecostal or Charismatic are deader than Tuesday because we have exchanged the message of the cross for a message that does not require man to do anything but "be blessed." "Blessed, blessed, blessed." That's all our churches have become in America - bless me clubs. That's all our living for God has become - how we can "GET" more from God instead of how much we can GIVE TO GOD. And the nation is perishing right before our eyes. Nothing we are doing or saying is making a difference in the nation.

        You may say, "well who are you to tell us what to preach or not to preach?" Nobody. I'm a nobody. I'm just a voice with a heart on fire for my Saviour who has been offended at the fact He has been pushed out of the church that bears His name. And I feel His hurt at this second I'm writing this because He knows the future and He sees the horrible judgments that are about to be unleashed on Planet Earth. He also sees the lukewarmness of those He has entrusted with the MESSAGE that will set the captive free. Yet we refuse to speak. We have become like Lot in the middle of Sodom - SILENT! Friend, we cannot afford to be silent any more.

A Vision Of Hell

    As I close this journal, I want to share a vision a lady recently had of hell. While having this vision the Lord spoke to her to take this vision to a preacher who actually had been asked to speak on this subject a church in the greater Kansas City, MO area. In the vision, the lady saw Jesus as a lion marching in cave wanting to get out. The Lord speaks and says, "I'm hungry for justice." The woman is terrified at the sight and closes her eyes. Then the Holy Spirit speaks and says, "Feel my justice." At that time her face gets so hot as if she is standing before an open flame. When she opens her eyes she screams and she sees pit after pit of tormented souls in an eternal fire. She hears the screams, the agony, the pain, the suffering, the torment. She smells the awful stench of death and foul odors that accompany the place of the damned. As she watches she sees souls coming from Earth just falling into the pit without pause. She hears a voice and says, "They are fuel for the fire." Then the Holy Spirit speaks again and says, "Whatever you do (and He called the church where the lady was a member) will determine how much fuel there will be for the fire." That at that second she saw Jesus standing in front of her - His eyes full of fire and fire coming out of his mouth and she realized that the fire in the pits were coming from His eyes and His mouth. Then the Lord looked at her again and said, "Tell this vision to Allen Hood." Allen Hood had been asked by the pastor of this woman three weeks earlier to preach on hell.

        Friend, what the church does in this hour will determine how much fuel will be added to the fires of hell. What we do or don't do will be what determines how many souls are lost in eternal torment. We can keep playing church and staying silent like Lot if we want to and the judgments God rained on Sodom and Gomorrah will PALE on what America will experience. America's sin is greater than Sodom because we have sinned against light. Or we can cry out and preach the TRUE GOSPEL of JESUS CHRIST - the power of the Cross, the power of the HOLY SPIRIT to set men free and see this nation truly change for God. It's revival or hell friend. It's revival or the pit. It's a national awakening of the souls of men and the conscience of this nation or we are going to PERISH!

        And the voices God is looking for are me and you! If the preachers won't do it, then God will go find someone who will speak out! He's looking for someone with the voice of Jonah who will boldly declare that judgment is coming and it's time for the nation to repent. You say, "well they haven't repented yet." NO, but that's because we have not been declaring the right message. We have watered it down to the point that when the TRUE GOSPEL is preached, the person preaching it is labeled too fanatical or extreme for this culture. Friend, it won't matter the culture surroundings when God has had enough and His mercy runs out. We need to pray for the Lord to send us Jonah's in this hour.

        On Final Thought

        I can't help but add this final thought before I close. Jonah was not perfect yet he was used by God to bring a nation to its knees. Lot was actually very "righteous" yet his silence doomed two cities. The people God uses in this coming hour may very well be people who have run from God in the past and gotten their lives so messed up it isn't funny. These same people have come back to God, repented, and are seriously trying to seek the Lord and do His will. The church had better be very careful how they treat the Jonahs among them. Some are divorced and remarried. Some are former druggies. Some are former preachers. Some are former prostitutes. Some have had illicit affairs in their past. Some have just come from a whale experience and are on their way to Nineveh. Be careful how you handle the Jonahs among you. I am a Jonah. I have had a call on my life since I was a child to preach the gospel. Despite the call, the combination of Satan's efforts and my own failures of my flesh have caused me to suffer two divorces and spend 3 years totally backslidden to the point I never cared if I darkened the door of a church, forget preaching. But the Lord's mercy stayed with me and in 1999 I came back to God and He has begun a work of restoration in my life that has surprised even me. In the summer of 2001 I began an intense quest for Him that I've never done with such passion in all my life. I've sold out to Him knowing that whatever/wherever He wants me to go or do by His grace I plan to do it. I don't say that like Peter said with pride so long ago. In my own flesh, I will always have the capability to fail. But through HIM I won't fail!

        I said all of that to leave you with this. The Jonahs of this world are coming! Pastor, you can push them out the door and sit them on the back row of "do-nothing," if you want to. You can smugly look your noses down at them and say, "well I have never had those type problems" if you want to. You can be like LOT - "righteous" but silent. In the end it will be the JONAHS who set this nation free by the message they will come to proclaim. Don't miss God's visitation because of your arrogance and pride and self-righteousness. The nation may depend on it!

Father, In Yeshuah's name, I thank you for the grace to be a VOICE in this last hour to a wicked, sinful nation. Lord, I pray for BOLDNESS in the HOLY SPIRIT to be a JONAH, not a LOT and proclaim the word of the Lord to my family, my friends and my country. Lord, give special grace to all the JONAHS out there who have missed you in the past but who have heard the word of the Lord a SECOND TIME and obeyed it and have come to Nineveh with a word from heaven. Help Your church HEAR what the Sprit is saying to the Church through these men of God. Lord, America depends on it. Help us do what we must do to stop the "fuel" being added to the fire. Lord, we know the repercussions of that. We don't have to be told twice that hell is real and Your word is real. Those who don't know You or have unrepented sin in their life will go there should they die. Lord help us be a light to those in this hour. Help the church become a VOICE. Let the prophetic VOICE be heard in the streets of Jerusalem in this hour. Help us to speak your WORD CLEARLY without compromise. Let us lift up the Son of Man so all men can be drawn unto HIM. We love You Lord and thank you for Yeshuah and His sacrifice. In Yeshua's name we ask it, Amen.