God does not owe me a full and satisfying life. “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). Wages are the payment due for work that has been done and, since I am a sinner by nature and practice, what I am owed is not an abundant life, but an eternal death. This is what I deserve from God. Anything else in this life or in the life to come is sheer mercy and grace. Jonah saw this and owned it right there in the water. With the waves pouring over him, he was confessing, “God, these waves are Your waves. I am under Your judgment. And I deserve to be under Your judgment.” Prayer begins with an
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