"Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 'Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come before Me.' But Jonah arise to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.'" Jonah 1:1-3 Have you ever been asked to do something that you really didn't want to do? Well, I have. Take for example (a petty example, I know) the dishes. I enjoy doing laundry. But dishes? Nope. Not my favorite task in the world. I would prefer to have a dance party around the kitchen, instead of focusing on actually getting dishes washed. But, you know, there are things much bigger than dishes that I have been asked to do even when I didn't want to. You too? Well, great. Now we can all relate to Jonah just a little bit better. One last question: Have you ever had someone that you really strongly disliked? You know, that person that totally just gets on your nerves and irritates you. Or that person that makes it really hard to be nice to. Or maybe even that person that wounded your soul deeply and you really, really dislike them. If your answer is yes, then I'd say you relate to Jonah a lot more than you may have first assumed. I remember thinking of Jonah as that prophet who got swallowed by the whale. The classic children's Bible story, right? How could I possibly relate to Jonah? I mean, I don't plan on getting swallowed by a whale anytime soon. It's easy to do that with the Bible stories that we have heard over and over again since we were kids. We think of these men and women as Bible characters who are "super spiritual" or "extraordinary." And we don't relate to them on a real level. We forget that they were human...just like us. And here's the thing about Jonah: He did not want to go anywhere near those people of Nineveh. Want to know how I know this? Because (spoiler alert) when God spares the people of Nineveh in chapter 4, Jonah throws a tantrum. He actually asks God to kill him. Like whoa, he must have really had some problems with those Ninevehites. So a little backstory for you, Nineveh was actually like the capital city of Assyria. It was like the Washington D.C. of the United States. And Assyria was really mean. Especially to Jonah's people, the Israelites. So if Jonah had a slightly strong dislike for these people, we can totally understand why. Think of a bully you know who has continually hurt you or your friends/family. You think pretty low of that kind of person, right? Yeah, well, Jonah thought pretty low of the Assyrians. When God asked Jonah to rise up and go to Nineveh and cry out against them, he turns and runs in the opposite direction. I get it. I probably would have to. Because I do. I do run in the opposite direction when God calls me to Nineveh. And I would go as far as to say that you probably have to. You see, Nineveh...Nineveh isn't always a geographic location. Sometimes going to Nineveh means crossing spiritual territory. There are many reasons I think God chose Jonah for this specific task. But I think mostly, God chose Jonah because He wanted to work in Jonah's heart. It's clear Jonah hated this people quite a bit. I mean, considering he wanted to die when God spared them and all. God could've chosen anyone He wanted. But He chose Jonah. I think because Nineveh was more about a spiritual battle for him than it was a geographic one. And, oh, yes. That's where I relate the most. That's where I throw my hands up and go, "Yes, Jonah, I know exactly how you must have felt." Growing up, I hated my biological father. I hated him for what he'd done. He was my Nineveh. And God was asking me to forgive him. To let go of the bitterness in my heart and give it over to Him to handle. And I was not ready to "go to Nineveh." So I fled to Tarshish. I sat inside my prison cell of bitterness as far away from God's call as I could and I stayed stuck there. I was being called to cross into spiritual territory that I did not want to cross into. But the truth? When I finally crossed that territory, I was set free. Friend, I don't know what your particular Nineveh looks like. Maybe it looks like mine, or maybe it looks completely different. Maybe you're being called to extend forgiveness that feels too hard for you. Maybe you're being called to start a ministry that terrifies you because you don't feel qualified. Maybe you're being called to befriend someone who is different than you and you aren't sure what to say. Maybe you're being called to a dream opposite the one you had for your life and it hurts. Maybe you're being called into a season of loneliness so that you can understand Christ's embrace better. I don't know what your "maybe" is, but I do know this: If you hear the voice of God today urging you to, "Arise and go to Nineveh," please don't ignore it. (I really do think you'd rather avoid the whale if possible.) It won't be easy and it may hurt. But it's worth it. Take a lesson from Jonah, our friend who lived so many years ago. Following Christ the first time--no matter where He is asking you to go--is always the best choice you could ever make. "Following Jesus wherever He leads you doesn't always mean geographically. Sometimes it means spiritually." (from "I Dare You") What did you learn in this chapter? What might be your Nineveh? What are some of your favorite verses from Jonah chapter 1? Join the conversation and share your thoughts in the comments!
8 Comments
Bella Morganthal
3/5/2018 11:35:38 pm
Aw, you're so sweet <3 Thank you, friend!
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Bella Morganthal
3/5/2018 11:35:54 pm
Thank you, Grace!
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Bella Morganthal
3/5/2018 11:36:12 pm
Thank you, Grace :)
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2/25/2018 05:10:37 pm
I loved this, it really spoke to me. Your write up on this chapter was so encouraging to me and spoke right to what I have been going through lately. Thank you, sweet friend! This is so true, God calls us for particular reasons, and sometimes we don't even know the reasons because they are deep in our hearts and He is working a great work to bring us closer to Him once we conquer our Nineveh, whether it is geographical or Spiritual.
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Bella Morganthal
3/5/2018 11:36:55 pm
Aww thank you so much, friend! You're always an encouragement to me! :)
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