The Divine Do-Over

“And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry ground.” Jonah 2:10



After three days and three nights even the fish couldn’t stomach Jonah any longer, but the upchuck came at God’s command. “And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry ground.” Jonah landed on the sand messy and smelly but alive and appreciative. Never had the air felt so fresh. Never had the sun been so bright. And never had God seemed so real.


But what would He say now? The Almighty certainly had Jonah’s full attention and could fill his ear with pointed reminders of Jonah’s mess-ups and mutiny. But God didn’t guilt Jonah with a lecture or shame him with his past. He simply repeated the initial order. “Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: ‘Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.’ Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh.”


Do-overs are divine. They arrive as gifts of mercy to be cherished and grasped. If grace grants you a second shot, do it well and do it right. Don’t repeat your sins of the past, but don’t live in fear that your failures dictate your future. The do-over isn’t given to remind you of what you weren’t, but to reveal what you can be—and who God is.


If God made a whale barf up a prophet on a beach, He should have no problem rearranging your life as He desires. And when He does provide a duplicate duty (after you’ve botched the first task), do what He says and stick to His plan. The God of heaven and earth, of sizable fish and sinful prophets, knows what is best—always.


If God grants you a do-over, embrace the grace and obey.
You might not smell so good, but a second chance is always sweet.