The God of Second Chances: The Book of Jonah, Part 3 :: Vineyard Church of Ann Arbor :: Rev. Donnell T. Wyche, Senior Pastor, November 15, 2015

As we continue to spend time in Jonah, we are hoping to highlight and expose the story of the God of Second Chances.

Having received a prophetic message to preach against the wickedness and sinfulness of the Assyrian Empire, Jonah decides instead to flee from God by hopping a ship to Tarshish, clear on the other side of the world. God sends a storm to disrupt Jonah's plan to thwart God's mercy and compassion. The sailors trapped on that ship with him, under distress and out of options, realized that Jonah was the cause of the storm. After many failed attempts to reverse their fortunes, they resign themselves to toss Jonah overboard. God acting in his mercy and compassion sends a large fish to sallow Jonah. Jonah spends three days and three nights trapped in this whale before offering a prayer of thanksgiving. His expression of gratitude for life and connection to God, not to be mistaken for repentance or some kind of key to unlock his time-out, was a counter response to the bitterness that Jonah wrestled with. After all of this, Jonah is vomited on dry land. That's where we will pick up the story.