Here I Am. Send Me!

by | Nov 10, 2026 | Articles, Mentors Corner

I have found, through trial and error that anytime my wife says “can I ask a favor?” I need to ask follow up questions before I agree to the unsaid favor.  Initially I wouldn’t ask follow up questions, only delighting in an opportunity to serve my wife.  I would come to find out the task could be something as simple as getting her a glass of water or as complicated as installing flooring in the front room. After a while I learned that before blindly agreeing to whatever the forthcoming favor it may be, it is in my best interested to ask some qualifying questions to understand the scope of the favor beforehand. What is the favor she is asking for?  Am I qualified, do I possess the necessary skills?  I found that more often than not, I do not have the necessary skills and may need to obtain them. Now this is sage worldly advice in how to handle requests from people.  We need to count the cost before we commit to a task so we can ensure we are able to complete it and meet the expectation of the people asking for the help. This applies to our business and personal lives, but not with God.  In fact, we need to eliminate this line of thinking when the Lord asks something of us. Isaiah 6:1 – 8 1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. 2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he...

Repentance From Mercy

by | Sep 29, 2026 | Articles, Mentors Corner

 “The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city, and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me.”  But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.  And the Lord hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea so that the ship was about to break up”  (Jonah 1:1-4). Jonah is most associated with the whale, or huge fish, depending on your translation.   We can have a tendency to see the whale as a disciplinary measure toward Jonah.  I would argue the whale is actual a sign of God’s mercy. The account of Jonah starts very simple:  God told Jonah to “Go to Nineveh” and “cry out against it.” God told Jonah exactly where to go and what to do.  Despite direct contact from the Almighty Himself, Jonah decided to go in the opposite direction, instead boarding a ship headed to Tarshish.  That was not the correct response. God sent a storm that almost breaks up the ship.  After some frantic actions, it is determined Jonah is the problem –he ends up in the sea. Jonah finds himself alone, presumably with no life jacket or other means of floatation.  All seems desperate, bleak, and hopeless.  Jonah disobeyed God and suffered the consequences of his wrong action in what...