Who Shot J.R? Can you believe it's been 35 years since the Texas oil baron J.R. Ewing was working late at his office when he was shot twice by a mysterious assailant? J.R. fell to the ground, his fate unknown, and every cast member a possible suspect until the TV series resumed the following fall. With that, the end-of-season cliffhanger became a popular trend in television. 

But the writers and producers of that popular TV show of the 80s have nothing on the writers and Producer of God's Word. Look at the book of Jonah - talk about a cliffhanger!  The story of Jonah comes to an abrupt end in Jonah 4:9-11 and, to coin another popular catchphrase, we never find out "the rest of the story."

The study guide we're using asked us what questions we would still like to see resolved at the end of Jonah. I jumped on that question and wrote down all sorts of things: Did Jonah come to his senses? Did he go back to Nineveh? Did he rejoice over the repentance of his former enemies? Was his life permanently changed after seeing God's hand  in everything? Did he ever get on a boat again? (I had a lot of questions.)

The next paragraph in the study guide went on to say, "While we are tempted to consider what we're not told, our time is better spent focusing on what we are." (Oops - I really fell for that one!) So....rather than contemplate the possible ending to Jonah's story, we have much to ponder and incorporate into our own lives and what part we are playing in God's plan.

A  thought-provoking comment was made during our discussion time, "Maybe we don't know the end of Jonah's story because his story is ours - we don't know what's ahead for us." We need to focus on what we do know:

• God is in ultimate control

• God can turn the mess we make into a masterpiece

• God pursues us, never giving up, because He wants to give us yet another chance to be usable in His plan

As with every Bible study, we need to decide what are we going to do now? Where are we headed with this? 

• Will we respond with renewed perspective when we encounter difficulties?

• Will we yield to God's instructions instead of seeking to run in the opposite direction?

• Will we be willing to share the Gospel with our "Ninevites"?

The rest of our story is yet to be written............