We're all familiar with his story in the Bible, right? If you aren't, I encourage you to read it for yourself (It's only four chapters!) but basically, God called Jonah to go to Ninevah and relay a message from God to the people living there. When Jonah received God's instruction that he was supposed to do this, what did he do? He ran. All the way to Ninevah! No, I'm just kidding lol, he didn't run to Ninevah. He actually ran in the opposite direction. He ran away from where he was supposed to be going because he was trying to get as far away from Ninevah and God as he possibly could.
Buuuut how many of us know that we can't run from God? I sure do.
We can try our best to run from God and the calling that God has placed on our lives. We can just say no, ignore it and pretend like it never happened, or be like Jonah and go and do the exact opposite of what God has called us to do. There are plenty of ways for us to run from God, but they all have something in common.
No matter which strategy we put into action as to how we're going to run from God, no matter how far away we think we can run from God, no matter how hard we try to run from God and get out of what He is asking of us, here's a newsflash. We can run as much as we want from God, but God can always outrun us. And when He does, He will catch us, turn us around, and send us running back in the direction that we were supposed to be running in, in the first place. There's no point in running from God's calling on our lives because God's will is going to prevail whether we want it to or not.
When we finally decide to stop running and surrender it all (including that rebellious spirit) to God, life gets so much easier. It's like a weight that's been lifted off of our shoulders. Because what we thought we didn't want to do, or couldn't do, ends up being the very thing that we needed to do.
Stop running from God, and start running to God. Embrace the calling that He has on your life no matter how scary or unrealistic it may seem. When God tells you to go, you should run; not away from it, but towards it. God is not going to call you to do something then leave it for you to do on your own. No, God is going to call you to do something then prepare you, guide you, and be with you the entire way.
When most people talk about the story of Jonah, we all somehow end up hearing about how he ran from God and ended up in the stomach of a big fish (which in itself should give us a reason not to run from God.. because that just sounds horrible lol), but rarely do we hear about what happened inside the fish, and what happened when he got out of the fish. While Jonah was inside the fish, what did he do? Well, I can't say from personal experience, but I'm sure there's not much to do inside of a fish but to pray. And that's exactly what Jonah did. He realized that it was his own fault that he was in the fish, so he repented, he prayed, and he sought God about what happened and what needed to happen next. Then God brought him out of the fish, and gave him the same instruction yet again, but this time Jonah did not hesitate to obey.
Being outside of the will of God is a very scary thing (I'm sure Jonah can attest to that) that I recently learned for myself. That was me. I was running. I was Jonah. Until God outran me. He caught up to me, He turned me around, and He sent me running back in the direction that I was supposed to be running in the first place. Who knows how much I could have avoided had I been obedient from the beginning. Who knows how much we all could avoid if we make up our minds to obey God from the start.
There is so much that God wants to use us for, but we have to let go of that pride, that rebellion, that unwillingness to submit. We have to let go of ourselves, we have to let go of our lives. We have to surrender and submit to His will, and let Him have His way in us.
"But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ." -Philippians 3:7
"For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel's will save it." -Mark 8:35
When we finally decide to let go of our own lives and what we want for ourselves, we will finally begin to live as God intended us to; fulfilling our purpose in His will. We will begin to see how much better it is to live for God rather than for ourselves. Plus, we never know who is waiting on the other side of our obedience.
"The things God tells us to do, the thing He considers to be our purpose has a greater impact. Purpose isn't just for you! It's for others to benefit from. You accomplishing your purpose is you being a point of provision for someone in need! You accomplishing your purpose and divine assignment is allowing someone to hear God's word and get a chance to be saved! This was the case with Jonah, and it is the same for us. Our obedience to God is so key. If you don't want to obey God for yourself, please at least obey God for the people that will benefit from your obedience."
God bless! ♥
-Elisha :)
-Elisha :)