Disobedience is walking contrary to God’s revealed Word. Stubborn disobedience brings a spirit of slumber and apathy. We all know the story of Jonah when he was fleeing “to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.” God sent a great storm and “Jonah [went] down into the lowest parts of the ship … and was fast asleep” (Jonah 1:3, 5). His disobedience had brought on a fierce storm but he was oblivious to the chaos and pain he was causing and drifted into a spiritual stupor.

The captain of the ship awakened Jonah from his sleep and the crew questioned, “For whose cause is this trouble upon us?” (Jonah 1:8). Jonah urged the crew to cast him overboard, but they ignored him and headed for land (1:13). Their actions said they knew they were on their own.

Jonah was utterly powerless. Even if he was spared from the storm, he was in no condition to prophesy to Ninevah, which had been his original calling (see 1:2). Scripture tells us, “The Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights” (1:17). Why would a merciful God take Jonah so low? He was in a living hell, but after three days and nights, “Jonah prayed to the Lord his God” (2:1). Why didn’t Jonah pray before this? It was because he was convinced, “I am cast out of Your sight” (2:4). He thought, “I’m a dead man; I can’t go any lower. God has turned his back on me.”

Nothing could have been further from the truth! When Jonah went overboard, the fish was there, ready to swallow him — evidence that the Lord was at work. Satan had succeeded in robbing Jonah of any hope of God’s grace for three days and nights, but the truth was that God was speeding him on his way to Ninevah — his place of obedience. Soon the prophet would be walking in sunlight again, fulfilling his calling.

The storm you’re in is meant to give you a revelation of God’s mercy and grace. If you’re walking in disobedience, run to him now, quickly repent, and pour out your soul to him. He won’t keep you long in the whale’s belly because he is a loving God who longs to restore you. The intensity of your time “in hell” will speed you on your way to complete victory — so keep your trust in him.

The Bible is clear that in these last days, the church of Jesus Christ faces the wrath of Satan. He is hell-bent on destroying marriages, alienating children, pitting family members against each other with the simple goal of bringing ruin and destruction to every home he possibly can. Jesus referred to this demonic work when he described Satan, saying, “You are of your father the devil … He was a murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44).

The tragedies plaguing families today are simply beyond belief. All over the world, the devil is wreaking absolute havoc and he will not stop until he devours every family in his path. Amid all this destruction, Satan has not overlooked Christian homes. Many believing families have been wracked by chaos, sorrow and pain through divorce, rebellious children, and addictions of all kinds.

In any troubled home, someone must get hold of Jesus! When an impossible situation arises, no counsel or medicine can help; a miracle must happen or else it will end in devastation. Miracles come as a result of intercessory prayer, determination and persistence.

When Christ was on the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, “a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, ‘Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed” (Matthew 15:22). Satan had moved into this woman’s house and possessed her daughter. Jesus didn’t answer the woman right away and the disciples even urged him to send her away so she would stop bothering him (15:23). But the woman wouldn’t leave because her daughter’s condition was a matter of life and death to her. She wasn’t going to relent in her pursuit of Jesus and the Lord commended her for it: “‘O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.’ And her daughter was healed from that very hour” (15:28).

Beloved, we have been promised all the grace and mercy we need for our crises and that includes every crisis involving our families, saved or unsaved. We have been invited to come boldly to Christ’s throne with confidence! But I can assure you of one thing: good things will never happen if we simply resign them to fate. We must labor in intercession for our family and our loved ones. Make this your prayer: “Lord, whatever it takes, I’m going to do battle for my family as long as I live.”

The Lord touches every servant who is faithful in prayer. He seeks out those who are willing to discipline themselves in order to hear his voice. The Bible calls this attitude “setting the heart.” Daniel writes, “Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes” (Daniel 9:3).

Daniel then tells us, “Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God … the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering” (9:20-21). In short, Daniel is saying, “God touched me while I was seeking him in intense prayer.”

Daniel makes it clear that he did not get his understanding of God’s Word by studying under learned men or gain his knowledge of future events from Babylon’s institutions. Nobody could teach him to interpret dreams that were supernaturally given. No, Daniel declares, “While I was speaking in prayer … he informed me, and talked with me, and said, ‘O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand” (9:21-22).

Simply put, Daniel’s prayers brought forth a word from God’s throne (see Daniel 10:12 and 14). What kind of prayer was Daniel engaged in that prompted such a visitation? Scripture tells us he had spent three weeks in utter brokenness: “I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all” (10:2-3). For twenty-one days Daniel humbled himself and set his heart to receive divine understanding.

During this time, Daniel was making a declaration of war: “Lord, I won’t leave your presence until I discern what you are doing.” Right now, God’s people need a word from heaven as never before. Never in history have so many multitudes been left weary and sick from dead, dry sermons.

You may say, “Well, I can’t spend hours a day praying.” But you can “set your heart” to talk with the Father daily and worship him in your heart constantly. Your discipline in humble and broken prayer will bring great rewards.

“No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone” (Psalm 91:10-12).

The Lord gives many distinct promises to defend and keep his people from evil and harm. However, how many people truly walk in the freedom of these verses? Consider, for example, Psalm 91:5: “You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day.”

Often the temptations we must endure occur at the time of our greatest usefulness to the kingdom of God. Suddenly we find ourselves violently opposed in our minds with thoughts trying to push us away from what God has called us to be in Christ. In light of this, bear in mind that in a season when men’s hearts are failing them for fear, it is potentially the Church’s finest hour to rise up for the sake of the kingdom of God. This means that you and I are likely to find ourselves in places that are very undesirable to the flesh — a type of personal wilderness.

Jesus was led into a wilderness place —tempted to abandon the ultimate purpose for his life: “Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil” (Luke 4:1-2). Jesus was about three years away from fulfilling the calling that was given to him by his Father — three years away from the greatest event ever recorded in the world, when the Son of God died for the sins of the world. He was so close to the finish line, and that is exactly when the devil tempted him the hardest.

Just as Satan tempted Jesus, we are going to be tempted to abandon the cross and the call of God on our lives. Thank God that Satan did not succeed in diverting Jesus to self-focus in the wilderness. He understood his purpose and did not shrink back from the cross in fear. Likewise, in this time of calamity, this wilderness, you and I must believe in the reality of God’s promises when so many around us will be gripped by fear.

Jesus loved to speak to the crowds in parables. “These things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables … that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, ‘I will open My mouth ins parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world’” (Matthew 13:34-35).
The Bible clearly states there are secrets of the Lord: “His secret counsel is with the upright” (Proverbs 3:32). These hidden truths have been unknown from the foundation of the world, but Matthew tells us they’re buried in Jesus’ parables. They have power to truly set Christians free if they are willing to pay the cost of discovering them.
Let’s look at the parable of the pearl of great price. “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it” (Matthew 13:45-46). The merchant here was also an assayer, one who made his living by evaluating costly pearls for their quality and worth. He represents a very small band of believers and Jesus is the pearl of great price, of incalculable value.
Obviously, the pearl belonged to the Father who possessed Christ just as any father possesses his own son. Indeed, Jesus is the Father’s most valued and treasured possession and only one thing would cause the Father to give up this priceless pearl — love. He and his Son had made a covenant before the creation of the world and in that covenant, the Father agreed to give his Son up as a sacrifice for the purpose of redeeming humankind.
When the chief priests examined this pearl, they greatly devalued him. “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced” (Matthew 27:9). Think of it! The God of the universe had made his precious pearl available to all, yet these men put little or no value on him.
Beloved, God intends his pearl to be found by those who are obsessed with possessing him. It is as if he is saying, “My pearl is available only to those who place a great value on him.” Jesus offers you everything he is — joy, peace, purpose, holiness. He is your treasure, available to you in exchange for your trust, your love, and your faith in his Word.

The word unrelenting means “undiminished, not letting up or weakening in vigor or pace; incapable to being changed, sticking to a determined course.”
This is a marvelous description of the love of God. Nothing can hinder or diminish his loving pursuit of both sinners and saints. The psalmist David expressed it this way: “You have hedged me behind and before … Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there” (Psalm 139:5, 7-8).
David is speaking of the great highs and lows we face in life. He’s saying, “There are times I feel so blessed that I’m lifted with joy. At other times, I feel like I’m in a living hell, condemned and unworthy. But no matter where I am, no matter how blessed I am or how low I feel, Lord, you are there. I can’t get away from your unrelenting love! Even when I’m disobedient — sinning against your truth, taking your grace for granted — you never stop loving me. Your love for me is relentless!”
Consider also the testimony of the apostle Paul. Here was a man bent on destroying God’s church like a madman because of his hatred for Christians. He breathed out threats of slaughter against everyone who followed Jesus and sought authorization to hunt down believers so he could charge into their homes and drag them off to prison.
After his conversion, Paul testified that even during those hate-filled years, God loved him. He wrote, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). And through the years, Paul became increasingly convinced that God would love him fervently to the end, through all his highs and lows.
“I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). He was declaring, “Nothing can separate me from God’s love — no devil, no demon, no principality, no man, no angel — nothing can stop God from loving me.”
This is the hope of every believer!