Jonah 1:5-7
5 The engulfing waters threatened me,
 the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head.
6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever.  But you brought my life up from the pit, 
O LORD my God.
7 “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, 
and my prayer rose to you, 
to your holy temple.

Now we are looking at this prayer from a pure heart.  A heart that gazes upon in His temple.  And when we see God on His throne- everything looks different.

This prayer is rich with promise when prayed with a humble heart.  We observe devastating circumstances in which life is being choked out.  Our world can do this sometimes.  Our life can quickly be overwhelmed become entangled.

This is where some of the most pressing decisions of our lives are made.  And this is why this prayer can be so powerful.  Here we see the declaration!  No matter what I face- God always has the last word.  We can never afford to lose sight of that.  Just as our life seems to slip away… our prayers rise to the very presence of God.  He hears and He responds.

He has the power to bring our head above the water, to deliver us from the sin that entangles, and bear the weight of the pressure that suffocates.  He invites us to trust Him.

There is no circumstance that can remove us from whisper of His grace or separate us from His love.  We must set our eyes on Him and refuse to trust in our perspective.  We must trust and we must pray:

Lord, though everything seems overwhelming, You sustain my life.  Just when I felt my life slipping, I sense Your love drawing me.  Lord, help me to live in Your grace and fulfill Your purposes in every moment.  Lord, I surrender my ways and embrace Yours.  Hear my prayer and breathe into my life Yours.  Amen.