“Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; every man shall turn from their evil way...” – Jonah 3:8

       Jenny lived a simple life when she was younger. But many times she felt out of place. To feel a sense of belongingness, she tried to level up with her friends’ whims and caprices. She went with them on various gimmicks and travels, and bought clothes and accessories here and there. She got buried in debt for using five credit cards. She lived a life of lies to cover up her financial difficulties. She became irritable and was always angry. Her relationship with her parents and siblings got strained. Her performance at work deteriorated.

       She came to her senses when she hit rock bottom. She called out to God for help. She talked to a counselor. She asked for forgiveness from her family, and their compassion and love lifted her from the dark pit of her life. Jenny immersed herself in prayer gatherings where she met friends who accepted, supported and loved her.

    She turned away from sin and believed in the Gospel. Sol Saura (sol_saura@yahoo.com)

Reflection:In this season of Lent, let us seek the face of God in our lives, in our country, in our relationships, in our service, in the people who need us.

Father, I have sinned. I have turned my back and walked away. I depended on my strength and lived life my own way. Forgive me. (From the song “Father, I Have Sinned”)

St. John of God, religious, pray for us.

The king and the people of Nineveh repent of their sins and do penance for their evil ways. God honors this and relents from destroying the city. Jonah foresees His mercy. Let us rejoice in the blessing and conversion of people. This is a sign of God’s love for all of us.

1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” 3 So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the Lord’s bidding. Now Nineveh was an enormously large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,” 5 when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. 6 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes. 7 Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh, by decree of the king and his nobles: “Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water. 8 Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; every man shall turn from his evil way and from the violence he has in hand. 9 Who knows, God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish.” 10 When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.

R: A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.

1 [3] Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness; in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense. 2 [4] Thoroughly wash me from my guilt and of my sin cleanse me. (R) 10 [12] A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me. 11 [13] Cast me not out from your presence, and your Holy Spirit take not from me. (R) 16 [18] For you are not pleased with sacrifices; should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it. 17 [19] My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit; a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn. (R)

Jesus calls the present generation to repentance, just as the people of Nineveh repented. God has already forgiven our sins but His forgiveness takes effect through our personal repentance. The more we sin, the more we need to repent. God’s patience never runs out so we can trust that He will welcome us when we return to Him in repentance.

Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart for I am gracious and merciful.

29 While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. 30 Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31 At the judgment the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and there is something greater than Solomon here. 32 At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here.”

think: What do you need to go back completely to God and seek His grace?

Read the Bible in one year Revelation 1-3

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

The first time God sent Jonah to Nineveh, he tried to escape. Now he is back to square one and he better go to Nineveh, known in the ancient world as the most cruel and horrible city.

       God gave him a second chance after his first failure, just like a student who fails an exam and is given an opportunity to redeem himself through a “retake.”

       When we get older, we often look back and wish we could get a second chance or a retake in some areas of our life. Unfortunately, most of our important choices are final or at least very difficult to reverse after a while. Second chances are rare in real life. In many situations, there are none. But Jonah got a second chance, and so he went to Nineveh. And wonders of wonders, he did not have to preach for three days. One day of a brief announcement of disaster was enough to convince these pagans to turn from their evil ways to God.

       But after this great success, Jonah is very angry with God. Why? Because God did not punish that wicked city. Jonah wanted these horrible, cruel, murderous pagans to be punished, destroyed and not saved.

       We have here a humorous but critical short story about Israel — and about us. God had sent prophet after prophet, but the Israelites would not repent. What about us? Not only prophet after prophet and saint after saint came to us. Even the Son of God Himself was sent to call us to repentance. Now we understand the harsh word of Jesus: “On Judgment day, the men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation and condemn it, because when Jonah preached they repented; and there is something greater than Jonah here.” Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD

---------- REFLECTION QUESTIONS ----------

One week of Lent has already passed. Have you turned away from sin? Have you repented?

Lord, too often I have ignored Your call to repentance. I feel ashamed reading about the pagan Ninevites. Please, Lord, let this story motivate me to be more eager to turn away from sin. Amen.