As a young camper, I was crossing a stream with other young hikers when our counselor warned, “Step carefully onto each rock; the water is deep.” I wondered, “How deep?” The following splash and water up to my waist answered my question. The counselor took my hand and pulled me from the water, and we safely continued our hike. This was a memorable first lesson in obedience.
When I became a student of Christian Science, I found the Bible to be a treasure trove of spiritual lessons in gaining a fuller understanding of obedience to God.
For instance, God instructs the prophet Jonah to warn the people of Nineveh to change their evil ways or be destroyed. Instead of obeying, Jonah boards a ship going in the opposite direction. The ship encounters a raging storm. Jonah and his shipmates believe his disobedience caused the storm, and Jonah asks to be tossed into the sea to save the ship. The storm calms, and instead of perishing in the sea, Jonah is swallowed by a great fish, inside which he repents. Delivered to dry land, Jonah immediately follows God’s instruction to warn the people of Nineveh to stop their evil ways. They repent and are saved (see Jonah, chapters 1–3).
