Jonah

My Bible study recently focused on the prophet Jonah.  The passage of Scripture in Jonah 1:1-13 shows both the futility of running from God and the consequences that bad choices can bring to our lives and the lives of others.

I, personally, can attest to the futility of running from God.  Having become a born again Christian early in life I later became very disillusioned with my choice and for years afterwards, at every opportunity, I tried my best to avoid Him.  My choice to preclude God from my life resulted in a failed marriage along with many other failed relationships including those with my children and family members.  These poor choices and decisions eventually caught up with me and one day I woke up and realized that I had lost everything that I had considered important in my life.  I had no place left to turn but to God.

That is what happened to Jonah only God was much more urgent in His dealing with Jonah than He was with me.  In a book that I read recently, Jonah's life was described like this.  

When he said no to God, the first thing Jonah had lost was his prayer life. It is significant that even the pagans were praying when faced with apparent death—but not Jonah. 

Next, we see that he had lost his compassion. Even though he was a prophet of God, he didn't seem to care for the precious lives of the crew. He simply looked for a place in the ship where he would not feel so much of the harsh effects of the storm. Jonah found temporary refuge in the hold or belly of the ship, the lowest place in the boat. 

The third thing Jonah lost by saying no to God was his testimony.  He eventually had to explain to the men that he was running from God, to which they replied,    "How could you do this? "    

A Christian saying no to God is far more repulsive to the world than a pagan who lives an ungodly life.

That is where I found myself.  I was a man without hope.  I had lost my communication with God as I didn't read His Word or talk to Him in prayer.  I had lost compassion for others not really caring who I hurt.  And finally, I had become anything but a witness to the greatness and goodness of God.  

God is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipresent (all-present).  How foolish was Jonah, or me, or anyone who tries to hide from God.  In Psalm 139: 7-12, David asks this question "where can I go from Your Spirit?  Or where can I flee from Your presence?  "   The answer, of course, is nowhere.  David goes on to say, "If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold you are there.  If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, and your right hand will lay hold of me, And I say,  "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night," even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day.  Darkness and light are alike to You." 

It took a lot of years but, through the love, patience, and grace of God, I have again reestablished my connection with Him.  Even though I may not do everything according to His will, I do try.  I study my Bible and I spend time in prayer with Him.  I look to Him in making most of my decisions and frankly with those decisions where I do not look to Him for guidance, they don't always turn out so well.  He is teaching me and I am learning.

However, even as I look back at what I had to go through to get where I am today, I am now looking at someone who is very close to me, having to go through the same thing, if not more so.  This is a person who used to daily work for God in almost every aspect of their life.  This is a person who at one time looked to God for guidance and direction, now completely ignores the plan that He had for them.  This is a person whose virtually every choice for the past few years contradicts the teachings of the Word of God.  This is a person who has hurt their parents and other family members to such an extent that I am not sure full forgiveness is possible.  This is a person sailing in a rudderless ship and I don't have any idea where they may end up.  Even with all that they are going through I know that the call of God is strong and persistent and I have complete faith that someday prayers will be answered and this person will change their life and will submit totally to the will of God.  Only then can God direct their life and put it back on the course that He had originally set for them.

I, from experience, do know that the prayers from those who never lost faith will be answered.  This person has caused terrible pain and hurt to people that I love and I am extremely angry, however, I still love this person.  In time, when this person surrenders completely to God and the will of God resides again in this person, forgiveness and reconciliation can take place.  

I pray for this person daily and even though I have reached a point where I don't know how or what to pray for, I know that in this case the Spirit of God who resides in me will intercede for me (Ro 8:26).   I believe in the power of prayer.  I can use your prayers as does the person that I am praying for so heavily for.