When God Says Go

            Today I read a very interesting true story that I’ve read a million times before, but hadn’t put too much thought into. The story goes something like this… There was a man who had been called by God to go do something he really didn’t want to do. He contemplated his options and doubted if God’s call for him was really the best plan. So instead of doing things God’s way, he ran away and went his own way. But as you may have guessed, that didn’t go so “whale” for him. God literally rocked his boat…And if you didn’t get it from those subtle hints, the guy’s name is Jonah.

             God called Jonah to go to Nineveh and preach his word there. Jonah had his doubts and “ran away from the Lord” (Jonah 1:3). He hopped on a ship bound for the complete opposite way of where God asked him to go. But what did God do? He sent a storm and shook things up. As Jonah was sleeping, the other sailors cried out to their gods to see if they could relieve the storm. Without any luck, the next thing they did was wake up Jonah. The sailors asked him about his God and what he had done to possibly cause this storm. Jonah knew that he had caused this storm by running away, and told the other men to throw him overboard. Reluctantly, they threw Jonah in and as soon as they did, the sea grew calm again. In Jonah 1:16, it says that when the storm calmed the other men immediately made a sacrifice to the Lord.

            As you probably know what happens next seems pretty crazy. Scripture says that the Lord literally provided a big ole fish to swallow Jonah and keep him from drowning. For three days and three nights, Jonah had quite the experience riding around in the belly of a whale. After praying and calling out to God, Jonah was vomited back onto dry land and given another chance to obey God’s command and go to Nineveh.

            I think this story is fairly common among believers. I know that I personally have heard it many times before. But growing up and hearing the story, I really didn’t understand how many lessons and amazing characteristics of God we can learn from it. Without even going into too much detail and including the end of Jonah’s story, here are a few lessons I noticed.

1. When God asks you to do something, do it.
2. You can’t run or hide from God.
3. If you don’t follow God’s plan and listen, God will intervene.

·         If you aren’t sure of God’s plan or if He has asked you to do something, prayerfully take small steps forward and God will intervene if it wasn’t something He intended for you to do.

4. God can work even in our failures.

·         When Jonah was thrown off the boat, the sailors definitely saw the power of God and came to know the God that Jonah had feared and believed in.

5. Even when we mess up and are in the midst of the sea, God is still in control.

·         Jonah getting swallowed by a fish wasn’t random, it was God’s plan. It was God’s way of opening his eyes and preparing him for his next chance to obey.

6. With a God of grace, there is such a thing as second chances.

·         Jonah messed up, but God forgave him and gave him another chance to get it right.

All of these things that were relevant in Jonah’s life are still relevant in our lives today. So if you’ve ever found yourself running away from God’s commands for your life, ask him to get you back on track and give you another chance to trust and obey him. When God says go, don’t run away because I guarantee that just like Jonah, you won’t get away with it.