“So, GOD, if you won’t kill them, kill me! I’m better off dead!”
GOD said, “What do you have to be angry about?”
But Jonah just left. He went out of the city to the east and sat down in a sulk. He put together a makeshift shelter of leafy branches and sat there in the shade to see what would happen to the city.
(Jonah 4:3-5 MSG)
I read Jonah the other day. It was bible study day at the nursing home and Jonah is a good and short book to read.
Four things stood out:
First, lets all try and stop reading the Bible to find quick answers and try hard to read it as a story. And also get rid of all the quick reference lists as well. No more "are you angry? Need more money? Just read this passage" type stuff. I really don't think that's why it's inspired. Try it. Go read David and Goliath because you want to get lost in a story, not because you are looking for some way for it to help you and I'll bet you find something you never saw.
Second observation...sure God wanted the boat to turn around. The wind and the waves were God's idea. The idea of Jonah being in the water, drowning...that was on the guys in the boat and Jonah. God did not punish Jonah by making a whale eat him. Maybe you know that, but I didn't really remember it that way from Sunday school. I remembered Jonah disobeyed God and then a whale swallowed him. So naturally, God punished Jonah by having him eaten. Not true. The whale (big fish) actually saved Jonah. He was drowning and overcome with waves, so God sent a whale to save him...because God is in the saving business.
Third observation...I'm with Jonah after Nineveh repents. They are, by all accounts, pretty awful people. Yes they repent, I get that part, but I still want my God in the punishment business when it comes to the people I deem "bad"...even if they repent.
I said this a few posts back, but I'd like to give God my list of people to have four brain surgeries if he'd just ask me. I look around at the people in and around my life and I'm pretty sure by my calculations most of them are worse than me. (No, of course not you reading this! The bad ones.) How can God continue to bless and not punish them but not me?
No, no forget my precious wife and the house and the cars and food and health insurance and good kids and loving families and pay checks and clothes and shoes and a playroom my kids can't open the door to for all the toys and the giant flat screen TV...I'm talking about all the real blessings like the other people I think shouldn't have them get.
Hop inside my head and you'll hear prayers to God about how I seriously doubt he knows what he's doing. You'll see how quickly I go all Jonah when someone else's life turns around or a blessing comes or a test is negative. Come with me and scroll through my social media...you can hear my thoughts and opinions on who does and who doesn't deserve the nice vacation they're posting about.
The fourth thing I learned reading Jonah out loud...I tend to miss the moments when God does the amazing because I'm scrolling through Instagram pouting. I've become really good at looking at you and being annoyingly bitter about how great I think you have it.
I'm sorry.
It really is dumb. Dumb to assume I need to understand the story better than God needs me to. It's ridiculous to think I have to grasp God's who, what, when, where, and how totally for it to be "right and fair".
I've missed the beauty of redemption because I am way to caught up in how it came about. I've been busy questioning grace in those around me and not busy enough enjoying their grace in front of me.
I'm really sorry.
I don't know if I'll get better or not. I'm sure going to try though. I don't want to miss anymore more beauty. I'm starting to annoy myself.
Maybe I need a whale...