Jonah Tries to Run Away
“1 The Lord gave this message to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh. Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are.”
3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.”
(Jonah 1:1-3, NLT)
God communicates with every one of us, not just with Jonah. He certainly does! Every day. He is here, all the time. If we listen and look, God speaks in ways to touch us as humans. “For God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it.” (Job 33:14)
I acknowledge that God was not always in my personal walk either, Jonah. For many years, I was like you, not listening at all or being in direct disobedience to God. I was on that boat to Tarshish, too. But by the Grace of God, He never gave up on me. He followed that boat and pulled me back to shore. I always needed Him but was blinded by my own ways. And in all my current persistent imperfections and brokenness, God still wants and loves me. The difference is, now I want and love Him, too. God, if You called me to go to Nineveh today, I would go if it is your will and on your agenda. I truly would.
“So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose.” (Hebrews 2:1,4)
God is shaping His Kingdom and wants you; needs you as part of it. We cannot be separated or run away from God. “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.” (Romans 8:38) So we must listen, learn and see … gently, patiently, and lovingly, just as God does for us.
Jesus said, “…I am not of this world…” (John 17:14) “For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”(John 4:24)
Please don’t complicate God in your mind or your heart. The world is complicated enough. His ways are majestically simplified, as He reaches for our love because of our limitations. His voice is soft and tender and comes in many forms: scripture, nature, music, art, sounds, other people, a kind word. He is everywhere and in everything (omnipresent). Look for Him. Listen for Him. He waits for you.
We must change our way of thinking to hear Him, to hold a dialogue, to converse with Him. “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2).God is Spirit. Believing in Him and living in our faith with perseverance and a humbled heart brings new knowledge, God’s comfort and unbridled joy. We must cling to this hope even in the worst of times. God is our only true hope.
After we hear Him
Once we hear, do we acknowledge it, accept His calling, or turn away and run away like Jonah? I think of it this way; please indulge me.
Some drivers in Florida (and Indiana) do not turn right on red. Others will only drive at slow speeds in the high-speed left lane. Some STILL text while they drive, swerving all over the place and driving 20 mph slower than the permitted speed limit and always in a no-passing zone. They feel the rules do not apply to them. Either they are oblivious to the world around them, or they deliberately choose to ignore the correct thing to do.
Do we try to steer God the way that we drive? Like Jonah, do we choose to ignore Him or are we truly totally oblivious to what we are doing? If we are heading in the wrong direction, then God is not first in our lives. This is not good.
He knows our journey. (Psalm 32:8). The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.”
We can be the backseat driver all we want (He will hold us steady as we rant, rave, and holler), but God knows our best direction. Let Him steer the car!
Sometimes we follow our own direction, our own agenda and then make excuses. We cannot use excuses to justify our continuation of wrongfulness. We tell ourselves, “I’ll be kinder tomorrow, God.”“No one will know.” “I didn’t really tell a lie.” “I’m not worried, God will forgive me.”By God’s grace, we can go beyond that. Are we perfect? No, of course not. If we were, why would we be here? What lessons would we learn?
But as believers in Jesus Christ, we will want to turn away from the torment of sin and disobedience to head in the right direction. How is this remotely possible? (Romans 8:11). “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.” (Romans 8:16-17). “For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs.”
Think about that! YOU are God’s heir. We come from God. We exist because of God. And after all our pain and suffering through this life, we go home to Heaven (not to Tarshish) to share in His joy, His love, and His glory forever. And THAT is no fish story! It’s a promise from God. Amen.
[Article was originally written July 22, 2019; revised February 16, 2025.]
Note: The book of Jonah is only four chapters long and easy to read from the Old Testament. If you need a Bible, please connect with any local Christian church to request one. And if you haven’t turned to Jesus Christ as your Savior, please pray to God about that, too.
(You are also welcome to email me at [email protected] so I can help support you and we can chat.) This is THE most important decision you will EVER make. Bonnie Zickgraf is a retired pastor, author, columnist for The Times and an RN in mental health nursing and health plan accreditations. Send comments and prayer requests to [email protected].