No Where to Run
I enjoy cat and mouse movies like The Fugitive, The Matrix, Minority Report, even Borne Identity (warnings for violence and language). The action keeps me glued to my seat, but I’ve noticed a pattern. The protagonist can only run for so long. The pursuit will never end until they face the people pursuing them.
Jonah from the Bible decided to play a cat and mouse game with God. Jonah was a prophet which wasn’t an easy job. Prophets were God’s messengers, warning God’s children about the future, calling them to repentance, and reminding them of their covenant obligations and God’s promises. Many kings and warriors turned to God’s prophets for counsel. They were spiritual leaders in the community but they were not always well received as shown with Queen Jezebel threatening to kill Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-2) and Jeremiah, nicknamed the weeping prophet, who was jailed, beaten, and ridiculed for his obedience in communicating God’s message.
Jonah knew the pros and cons of his line of work, and I’ve been guilty of putting off some of the aspects of my job that aren’t my favorite. But Jonah rebelled against his boss and tried to “quiet quit” on God. He didn’t like that the Lord asked him to go to the city of Nineveh to announce judgement for their evil ways. Instead of obeying, in Jonah 1:3 it says, “But Jonah got up and went the in opposite direction, to get away from the Lord.”
Get away from God? Where can you go that God can’t find you? Ask David in Psalm 139:7-10 who said:
“Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.”
Jonah would have known this psalm, yet he still hopped on a boat and sailed west toward Tarshish, instead of east to Nineveh. God had Jonah swallowed by a fish and spit out on the shores a short jaunt from Nineveh. The people of Nineveh listened to Jonah’s prophecy, repented, and changed their ways. God’s will was done and while Jonah was used in the miracle of being eaten by a fish and living to tell the tale, his rebellious heart condition caused him to miss out on the joy.
The prophet’s story doesn’t have a happy ending. Instead of celebrating an entire city repenting and turning back to God’s ways, Jonah pouted because he was angry God showed mercy on Nineveh. He wanted Nineveh punished and tells God that he tried to run off to Tarshish because he knew God to be merciful and compassionate and feared He would extend grace to the people of Nineveh.
I tried to hide like Jonah. A group I was in opened up for anyone to pray. God nudged me and even gave me the words, but I hesitated and stayed quiet. A minute later another person spoke up and prayed almost verbatim what I was supposed to have prayed. It’s a small example of a missed opportunity to bless people, but I wonder how many other blessings I’ve I missed because I hid, ran, or pouted like Jonah because I wanted a different outcome.
God’s will will be done, but do we have the guts to act as God’s vessel and be blessed?
Has God put something on your heart that you’ve been putting off or hiding from? Instead of running, maybe it’s time to ask God for His boldness and courage to see you through the task and the joy to celebrate God’s will being done. Pray for a heart that’s open and trusting of God’s ultimate plan.
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.” Isaiah 55:8