Jonah was not a fictional character or a mystical hero. He was a real prophet from Israel, mentioned in history during the reign of King Jeroboam II. He was an ordinary man with an extraordinary assignment—to preach repentance to Nineveh, the brutal capital of Assyria, Israel’s enemy. Jonah knew God’s voice, but he didn’t like God’s plan. Instead of going east to Nineveh, he ran west to Tarshish, hoping distance could quiet a divine calling.
Running from God is never wise. Jonah’s disobedience didn’t just affect him—it endangered everyone around him. A violent storm threatened the sailors’ lives until Jonah admitted the truth: he was fleeing the Lord. Only when he was thrown overboard did the sea grow calm. God then appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, not to punish him, but to preserve him. Three days later, Jonah was deposited near the shore by his underwater Uber…exactly where he should have been all along.
Imagine the scene. Jonah, likely bleached, burned, stinking, and wild-looking from the belly of the fish, walks into Nineveh declaring, “Repent, or destruction is coming!”
Shockingly, it worked. From the king to the common people, Nineveh fasted, repented, and God spared them from judgment.
Yet Jonah was angry. After all that he endured, they were forgiven without consequence. He sat alone, bitter, wishing destruction had come anyway. And God gently asked him, “Doest thou well to be angry?”
What a lesson. God’s calling never comes with superpowers which override our humanity. He uses ordinary people with real emotions, fears, and limits. If your calling has cost you time, energy, finances, or even your body, take heart. Maybe you have anger or resentment over what “should have been”. Obedience to God always has purpose and reward…but often those will not be seen until we get to heaven.
For now we are simply gears in His transmission and pixels in His big picture. Remain faithful to your calling, friend!
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Jonah is in my opinion a prophet for our modern generation; we have much to learn from him regarding obedience to the Almighty. Great post Eric. God bless you and your family today dear brother 🙏
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I agree…preaching repentance to a society of sin is an unfriendly and unpopular act…but those who do it have courage and my respect. We could stand to have more Jonah’s in the world! Have a blessed day, brother Alan!
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This was good for me. I might be more like Jonah then I thought…Our retirement consists of taking care of our severely handicapped daughter. Sigh…We had other dreams…what could have been stuff…resentment sneaks in too easily but God does quietly ask the right questions.
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What you’re doing is extremely loving and sacrificial…nobody understands that more than God, brother. When I see ads on TV with silver-haired retirees sailing on yachts and laughing their way through European fruit markets I have to laugh…that’s not reality for 99% of us.
I’m thankful for you, Gary. You’re the faithful example that helps us prepare for hard trials, and you’re the toughest among us because you’re actually doing it without quitting. Again, thanks for caring for your daughter she is blessed to have you, as hard as it must be on you guys. Have a blessed day, bro!🙏👍🏻
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You are very encouraging…thank you. This morning my wife and I took a 20 minute walk…she calls these times glimpses. Sometimes it’s a blessing to be pressed into cherishing the smallest things most take for granted.
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You’re exactly right, we have to capture those “moments in time” and also realize that the best is yet to come. God doesn’t just hang us out to dry, He has a reason and eternity is going to be beyond our wildest expectations.
God bless you and your family brother.
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Love that closing thought, Eric, that we’re pixels in God’s big picture. I’m thinking of those artworks made with hundreds–maybe thousands–of little portrait photographs. Separately, not so impressive. Altogether they make a glorious work of art. Our God is an artist extraordinaire. To be part of his holy handiwork (Ephesians 2:10), now THAT’s amazing and thrilling!
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