Jonah and the Whale

We need to pray for children who have never heard of Jesus, that they will let Him become their Best Friend.

Bible Text:

Jonah chapters 1 to 4.

Age Group:

Preschool to Grade 2.

Jonah was a prophet in Israel and one day the Lord told Jonah to go to Nineveh.  He was to tell the people there to turn away from their wicked ways.  But, Jonah didn't want to go to Nineveh, and so he ran away to the seaport of Joppa.  He found a ship that was going the opposite way going to Tarshish.  He was hoping that he could escape from the God.  Jonah boarded the the ship, but no sooner was it at sea than the Lord sent a terrible storm.  The wind howled and the waves beat against the ship almost causing it to sink.  The sailors and the captain were afraid, and so the captain begged Jonah to pray to his God so that they could all be saved.

Jonah is the Guilty One:

The sailors decided to cast lots to see whose fault it was that the terrible storm had come.  So they cast lots, and the lot fell to Jonah.  He admitted that he was running away from doing what God asked him to do.  He told the sailors to throw him into the sea and then the storm would stop.  Although they didn't want to hurt him, the sailors prayed to the Lord, and then did as Jonah asked.  They picked him up and threw him over the side of the ship into the sea.  They could hardly believe it when the sea ceased its raging and the waves died down, and all became quiet and peaceful.

The Big Fish:

But God did not want Jonah to drown and die, so He caused a great fish (we think it was a whale) to appear just as Jonah was being thrown overboard.  The whale opened its enormous mouth and swallowed Jonah.  All of him, as though he was just a little fish!   Jonah stayed in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, praying to the Lord for forgiveness.  And the Lord heard Jonah and spoke to the great fish and it spat Jonah out onto dry land.

Jonah Listens and Obeys:

Then God spoke to Jonah a second time, telling him again to go to Nineveh.  This time Jonah listened and obeyed God, and went to Ninevah just as the Lord asked him to.  And the people of Nineveh believed Jonah when he said that unless they turned from their wicked ways, the city would be destroyed in forty days.  The people fasted and prayed and when God saw how they turned from their evil ways, He forgave them and did not destroy them.

Jonah was angry with the Lord for having forgiven the wicked people of Nineveh.  He felt they should have been punished for their evil ways.  But, the Lord spoke again to Jonah, and taught him to pity the people and pray for them, and to care for them.  Just as Jonah had cared for a little plant that had sheltered him from the sun.

There are many children who have never heard of Jesus and how He loves them.  We need to pray for these children and to care for them.  We can tell them about Jesus and how he died so that they can go to Heaven one day and live there forever.  Perhaps like Jonah, they will listen and let Jesus be their Best Friend.

God bless!

Copyright © 2007 Sharon Children's Ministries