Image from blog.fbcpellingham.org
When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it. But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. He prayed to the Lord and said, ‘O Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. And now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.’ And the Lord said, ‘Is it right for you to be angry?’ Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city. The Lord God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, ‘It is better for me to die than to live.’ But God said to Jonah, ‘Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?’ And he said, ‘Yes, angry enough to die.’ Then the Lord said, ‘You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labour and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?’ (Jonah 3:10-4:11)
Why do we insist on getting our way? Aren't we all guilty of that at one time or another? Some more times than others. Jonah was no different. You know his story; called to preach, he says no and runs away. He tries to hide from God, boards a ship, storm comes, he offers to be tossed overboard, gets swallowed by a great fish, and prays. Jonah gets a second chance and he goes preaching the message of God, which said, "Repent and be saved." But, in his heart, Jonah wanted the punishment of God to come down anyway. The entire city of Nineveh repents, even the cows! But, Jonah was not happy. It seems almost silly to hear Jonah's words, "I knew it! You are a gracious and merciful God; slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing." Then, Jonah says, "And now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better to die than to live." Whoa! Yesterday, we read something similar, but it was a voice who said basically, "God, Your will be done. If I keep living, I keep serving. If I die, I win!"
Then Jonah falls in love. With a bush. The bush grew big enough to give Jonah shade. Then a worm, sent by God as scripture says, attacked the bush and it dies. Then the dialogue that follows between God and Jonah lets Jonah see the love that God has for all of His creation. If we could but understand God's love, and apply it to our lives, we'd have a better understanding of the love and care we should have for each other, and we would be ready to say, "Your will be done. Not mine." C.S. Lewis wrote that hell is filled with people who throughout their lives here said, "My will be done." Heaven is filled with those who knew to say, "Thy will be done."
PRAYER: Loving God, grant us deeper understanding to accept and know Your will. Help us to be people who love You and love Your people and Your creation. Grant us patience and peace; in Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. Smile as you see God's will be done in your life or in the lives of others!
Eradio Valverde
