You Can Run But You Can’t Hide

Jonah 3:2 (NLT) —

‘So he complained to the Lord about it: 'Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.'

Something I love about Jonah is how human and real he is. He doesn’t want to go to Nineveh and share God’s message. It’s not political, he just doesn’t like them. So, he runs away, and when that fails, he does as God asks but has a big strop.

Judging others is something we all do every day. Jonah was bold enough to sit down in the sand and be angry that God would love these people. God’s response to this was not to shame him, be angry with him or yell at him. He gently and firmly engaged with Jonah where he was.

I used to work for the NHS and had to speak with a lot of people who could be quite difficult. So many times, I groaned inwardly when I saw their names on my list because I knew it would be a difficult conversation lasting an hour or more. Every time I begrudgingly made these calls, the person I called would surprise me. They would brighten and share how life-giving or important that call was to them. I still groan before making that sort of call. God has to remind me again how important the call is for that person.

There are always people we may not want to reach out to. They are difficult, annoying or we just don’t like them. It’s ok to be real about this with God and ourselves, but people surprise us and God is the master of surprise. Perhaps you have a Nineveh in your life. It is ok to admit this to God but be open to him asking you to reach out. 

Prayer - God, please help us to be honest about those we struggle with in our lives. Lead us in how we can reach out to these people.