Now that He has your attention…..
Jonah 1:1-3 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
Many people stop at the book of Jonah and just think of the ‘fish story’. The depth of this small prophetic book in only three chapters is much more. Jonah speaks to me in the sphere of running from God as in these scriptures above. It then speaks of obedience, faith, self-denial, and repentance. Christ quoted Jonah in Matthew 12:39 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. Jonah was an example of Christ in the Old Testament, and led Nineveh to repentance of their sin.
God has a way of getting our attention. We may hear from God, but not like what we hear so we deny we ever heard it at all. We may flee like Jonah and run from what we heard, or turn our attentions to other things that make us feel good about ourselves. Do we really think like Jonah we CAN run from God? He is looking upon our actions and thinking we just don’t get it. God may not put a fish in your path, but he may close doors to redirect it. He may put people and events in your life to change its direction. He may press down on your heart and mind in these tests of faith. Moses and Jeremiah questioned God’s call too, but they did not flee. Jonah did, and God’s Will for His life was still accomplished through the fish and Jonah’s ultimate obedience.
What is God telling you? Are you even listening for Him? It does not come in in billboards, emails, or a Facebook status. It comes only through a heart seeking Him in prayer and His Word. The static of this world will dull your senses to God. The static of busyness and technology have created barriers in your mind that your heart can only tear down. God may use a really big event in your life to get your attention, but what do you do with it? Do you see Him in it? These are the game changers that He uses to tear down those barriers instantly to gain our attention. Then we must approach Him Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! When He has your attention don’t flee as Jonah, but be obedient as Moses and follow God’s Will for your life.
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