Jonah is a funny guy. You see, Jonah ran away from God. Did not walk. Trot. Skip or even meander. It was a full on run for your money don’t step on my blue suede shoes pedal to the metal run like the dickens and the wind combined. God told Jonah of his mission. Spelled it out from top to bottom. No question about what the prophet was going to have to do.
However Jonah is like each of us. When confronted with the “great commision” we sometimes wimp out. Walk away. Shake our head, throw up our hands and say, “Ahh, no.” We would rather live in the world away from God and the life he promises. And that is what Jonah sought. He didn’t want to do what God commanded. The great mission to undertake possible salvation of a city and it’s people.
And Jonah ran. Ran like a terrified puppy after making a mess on the bearskin rug. He knew he was wrong and like many of us simply hoped to get as far away from God as he could. Sad truth is God doesn’t have a distance. Mind you, I think He probably could hit for distance (who gave us basketball, baseball AND hockey? Yea, He’s that good).
Point is God’s right there with Jonah the whole ride out to sea, pushing on his heart. And as the storm rages outside that boat threatening to rip the very floorboards Jonah rests on…he knows. Jonah knows full well he is the cause of all this. And in the end he must admit to his faults and be thrown overboard to face whatever God had cooked up for him. We all know the rest of the story.
Belly of the whale, prayer, thrown up, preaches, saves the city and then finds himself in a debate cage match with God about the timing of fire and brimestone and why it seemed to be very late in the afternoon and no destruction of the Nin’s had happened.
That’s the short version. The point is that much like Jonah, we’ve ignored, misheard and completly bungled the path God had opened for us. Following him through and through has never been humanity’s strength. We’re weak. We’re slow. And at times it’s a wonder he hasn’t Zeus-ified us all.
Jonah finally turned around to do what God had asked only after having living in a whale and finding himself in that whole bile infested mess. I’ve come to realize I’ve ran away from God. I think I still kept in touch with him, praying every so often as I was at times so lost. And yet I knew he was there. I knew God was walking with me, waiting for me to turn to him.
This is the beauty of God to me. You may think you’ve walked a thousand miles away from Him. But he’s just around that riverbend waiting, watching and listening for you. God’s with you. Always.
