Jonah 4:1 This change of plans upset Jonah, and he became very angry. I can so relate to this! I like to know what’s going on, and sudden changes in plan tend to throw me a little. I can also understand a little about why Jonah was angry that God changed His mind about destroying Nineveh. It’s not about the destruction, so much as it’s about Jonah’s reputation as a prophet. Prophets could be killed for falsely prophecying. Plus, to predict death and destruction and then have nothing happened makes him look foolish or incoompetent. How many of us hate it when that happens! Maybe we predicted a major systems failure that never happened, or we predicted that our students would do awesome on a test (maybe even bragging about our awesome teaching methods) and they bombed it. Or, maybe we claimed a promise or asked God for a miracle that never seemed to come. I think this last one is a big one. There are times when I am afraid to believe God for something or to ask Him for something because I’m afraid of looking foolish if it doesn’t happen. Our anger and fear of looking silly or of being wrong overshadows and stifles our faith. Faith can be fragile, and these ugly weeds of, ultimately, pride and selfishness can strangle it before it has a chance to grow. So, yeah, I can understand Jonah frustration. That still doesn’t make it right. But I can understand it a little. Maybe, in the end, it helps to remember that God isn’t interested in my comfort level, so much as He’s interested in the souls of those around me. And He will do whatever it takes for those souls to hear His voice, even if it means a change in plans.
Jonah 1:19 The sailors were awestruck by the LORD’s great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him. I’d have been pretty awestruck, too. Imagine! There are 10-20 foot waves crashing around your not-so-huge boat. You’ve thrown everything you can into the boiling, churning water in a desperate attempt to stay afloat. The rain is whipping around like nails, hammering the deck in a thunderous applause. The deck rears up, throwing people and the few objects left from one side to the other, threatening to knock everyone into the deadly sea. The sky is black, and the water is blacker. All hope seems lost. But then, a crazy guy who can sleep through a storm this bad, admits to angering a God you’ve never heard about and offers to be thrown overboard. And the minute his feet leave the deck on his way into the water, instantly the sea is calm, the driving wind and rain become a gentle breeze, the clouds vanish and the sun shines down. Yeah, I’d be awestruck! Even though Jonah disobeyed God and brought a great storm on these guys, there was some good that came from it. No, Jonah didn’t really learn a great lesson because when God didn’t destroy Ninevah he was very upset (You should watch the Veggie Tales version – Jonah and the Big Fish – to get a great illustration of this point). But these sailors, who had just thrown their livelihoods overboard, became servants of the Most High God. Our disobedience affects other people. Jonah’s probably cost the sailors tons of money. But it doesn’t have to be all bad. God used Jonah’s sin to show His power, punishment, and mercy to the sailors who might never have heard of Him otherwise. I’m not advocating sinning just so God can use it for good. I’d imagine that far more good comes from our obedience; but since we are constantly fighting our fleshly, natural natures, sin is inevitable (remember that verse… all have sinned – Rom 3:23….yeah, that would be me and you and everybody on earth). It’s a bit reassuring to know that God can bring good from our stubbornness and selfishness and pride.