The Lord God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. Jonah 4:6
Our dear elderly, next door neighbor, Tom, thoroughly enjoyed gardening in his yard. He could be seen from early morning until late at night, tenderly caring for his many trees and plants. We were so gifted with having both him and his wife there! He not only loved to share with us his harvest, but also the many young plants that multiplied in his prized garden. How we looked forward to enjoying the juicy, plump tomatoes, as well as the many other fruits and vegetables he grew and would deliver to our door! One year he gave us a cutting from his grape vine. Within a year or two, that vine grew abundantly with leaves and grapes! (I made many a jar of grape jelly from them!) Tom even made an arbor for it that provided a shady, cool, quiet spot to relax in during the hot summer months. What a surprise it turned out to be! How comfortable it felt under that arbor out of the sun! It was great to enjoy that area of our yard that previously had been overlooked. Not gardeners, having grown up in the city, my Roger and I learned much about gardening from Tom. But most of all, we treasured his friendship and his thoughtful, caring ways.
In this passage from Jonah, God demonstrates again through Scripture, His constant concern about our discomfort and His desire to always provide what is needed to alleviate it. Just imagine the heat Jonah was experiencing sitting there in the sun outside the city of Nineveh, where temperatures could typically reach over 100 degrees in the summer months! Imagine Jonah’s surprise when God made available this bush with all its leaves, supplying the cool shade he so needed! A bush that grew up over night, seemingly out of nowhere! Impossible? Nothing is impossible with God.
It took months and months, for our grapevine to grow enough to cover an arbor and provide shade; months of cultivating and diligent care. And to think, God used something as simple as a bush to show His love for us and His tender caring about our needs . . . Oh, how good God is!
Heavenly Father, for providing shade from the heat of the sun, with the beautiful trees and plants you give us, we thank you! For tenderly caring for our needs when things get too oppressive, we thank you! For loving friends and neighbors, we thank you, Lord!
Copyright© 2014 Kathleen A. Matson