Chris Little

Jonah is a great story. It mimics many of our lives and our faith journeys. Jonah is someone who loves God and wants to be faithful to Him. So, we find him praying and asking God to use him. Now, if you don’t really want God to use you, don’t ask. Example: If you don’t really want patience, don’t pray for it, because the process of attaining patience is not fun! Jonah finds this out the hard way. He asked and he was told to go to Nineveh.

Nineveh was the last place that Jonah thought God would send him. As a matter of non-fact, I bet Jonah said, “God, what the heck are you thinking? Don’t YOU know those people?” Jonah did not like the people Nineveh. I’m sure he had plenty of reasons to not like them. They had a reputation for wickedness, evil, and ruthlessness in battle. I can imagine that he had all kinds of emotions running around on the inside when God told him to preach to the city Nineveh (Jonah 1:2).  Has God ever asked you to do something that struck fear into your heart?

Courtesy of Stock Exchange

Jonah heard from God and he chose to run from the job that he had been given.  Actually, he ran in the opposite direction from Nineveh. Have you ever run from God? Why do we run? Do we really believe that we can outrun God? I mean, does God get tired of running and give up? Do we think we are playing the childhood pool game of  “Marco Polo” and that if we don’t respond with “Polo” he’s not going to find us? I believe we run for a variety of reasons: fear, the task seems too daunting, unbelief that God would want us to really deal with those people, or my personal favorite – God, you must not understand, that is not apart of my plan(s) that I have asked you to bless.

What is God asking you to do right now? Are you ready and willing to jump in and do it? Are you thinking about running? What is making you think running is a better solution than obedience?

God’s love for His people never withers away. It is always spring time. His love for us is like a 24/7, 365 days a year for the rest of our lifetime honeymoon! Who would not sign up for that?
God is love (1 John 4:16). It is his character, his makeup, his nature. If you were to squeeze God like a sponge – love would ooze out. If you were to squeeze some of us – “stuff” other than love would ooze out. How do I know that God is love (1 John 4:7-10)? I know because I have experienced his love. My words are inadequate to describe it – you just have to experience it for yourself.
God’s love motivated him to offer us a gift, a great sacrifice on his part, himself. He literally gave his life so that I could be bought from the marketplace of slavery (Rom. 3:23-25). Real love always leads to sacrifice at some level (1 John 3:16a).
His love and sacrifice has guaranteed us the greatest life. It’s actually a pretty easy life too – love God with every part of your being and love your neighbor as much as you love yourself (Matt. 22:37-39). I got the loving God down most of the time. I am also really good at loving myself – I will go to no amount of expense or inconvenience to show myself love. My neighbor? God, do you know them? Then, it hit me. God is in the same marketplace where he “bought” me ready to buy them too.
Jesus wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) because the people did not understand how much he loved them. Jesus counted the cost (his love persevered) and he still gave his life for mine. God wants me to love others like he has loved me. When was the last time I wept over my neighbors? My kids’ school? The people at the grocery store?
I want to love my neighbor…God, grant me the heart that weeps over them!