Bible in a Year : Job 3840; Acts 16:121
In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. Jonah 2:2 On July 18, 1983, a US Air Force captain disappeared from Albuquerque, New Mexico, without a trace. Thirty-five years later, authorities found him in California. The New York Times reports that, depressed about his job, hed simply run away.
Thirty-five years on the run! Half a lifetime spent looking over his shoulder! I have to imagine that anxiety and paranoia were this mans constant companions.
But I have to admit, I also know a bit about being on the run. No, Ive never abruptly fled something in my life . . . physically. But at times I know theres something God wants me to do, something I need to face or confess. I dont want to do it. And so, in my own way, I run too.
The prophet Jonah is infamous for literally running from Gods assignment to preach to the city of Nineveh (see Jonah 1:13). But, of course, he couldnt outrun God. Youve probably heard what happened (vv. 4,17): A storm. A fish. A swallowing. And, in the belly of the beast, a reckoning, in which Jonah faced what hed done and cried to God for help (2:2).
Jonah wasnt a perfect prophet. But I take comfort in his remarkable story, because, even despite Jonahs stubbornness, God never let go of him. The Lord still answered the mans desperate prayer, graciously restoring His reluctant servant (v. 2)just as He does with us.
What, if anything, have you tried to run away from in your life? How can you grow in bringing to God the pressures that overwhelm you?
Good evening, Mayor, and thank you for today’s sustenance for body and soul.
Did you have a good Monday? Enough rest?