Lessons learned inside the belly of a fish

I'll be upfront and honest with you. I generally avoid the book of Jonah like the plague.

Until today, I only saw Jonah as a rebellious man. God calls him. He runs away. He gets thrown off a boat. Swallowed by a fish. Vomited out of the fish's mouth. Resentfully proclaims the word of the Lord. City gets saved. Jonah remains in a bad mood. The end.

Today, as I was researching faith in the Bible, I went to the book of Jonah. I know, I know. Hebrews 11. Hall of faith. Most of the New Testament. Faith. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Faith. Jonah is about the last person that I consider when I consider a teaching on faith.

Stick with me for a moment. (Or, if you are already ahead of me, chill for a moment and let me catch up.) Jonah is a Hebrew. He is secure in who God is, and who his people are in God...they are God's chosen people. The people in Nineveh are Assyrians...a bad group of people. For fun, when they conquer a land, they skin people alive; they boil people in oil; they kill babies and kids in the most cruel, inhumane ways possible.

So, God tells Jonah, "You know the most evil, heinous people on the face of the earth? Go to them and proclaim the Good news." Jonah becomes infuriated and heads in the opposite direction, to Tarshish. I would have too. God's love for the Assyrians is so great that He causes a storm, gets Jonah thrown overboard, swallowed by a big fish and vomited onto the shore. Of Nineveh. God uses Jonah's mouth, despite his bitterness, to save a city.

You see, I don't think that Jonah's main problem is his bitterness or his rebellion. I think that his problem is that he knows that God is going to move. Jonah has seen God move, and knows God's compassion and love and grace. And God knows that Jonah knows that He will move.

Put yourself in Jonah's place. God has called you to a place where you know that He wants to move. But you are afraid of the people; they have repeatedly tortured you and your people throughout the years. They are building a nuclear bomb that they would like to use to level your cities, to bring destruction to your land. Now, imagine God asking you to leave your land to go to their land to proclaim the Good News. Would you be willing?

How about this scenario. Think of a person who has hurt you deeply. Or a group of people who have hurt you deeply. A group of people who absolutely terrify you. Think of them, their friends, their relatives, sitting at a table in your local Starbucks. These people do not know God, but you know that He wants to speak words of healing and reconciliation with Him into their lives. Do you walk up with your skim caramel macchiato and tell them of the wonders of God? Or do you hop in your SUV and hope for the best for them?

So, today I learned some valuable heart lessons inside the belly of a whale. Some faith lessons. I believe that some of us, myself included, know that God wants to move...I'm talking about people who know God, know His grace, know His love and compassion for His people. The problem with God is that He wants to move in people we don't like, who don't fit our agenda. So, we pack our bags, hop in our ship, and "pray" for those people.

Are you going to be a Jonah a serve God begrudgingly? Or are you going to serve the Lord with gladness and allow Him to move in others' lives and therefore move in your life?

Call to action

This weekend was a weekend of healing for so many...the countenance of many of the women that I know has literally changed. And for that, I thank God. It is amazing to watch Him move.

This weekend was also a call to action. Today Pastor Jay preached. He taught on growth...how it is important to mature as individuals, but also as a body. One of his illustrations hit me. Babies are really cute. But, if they don't develop, mature, grow, at a certain point, this indicates that there is a problem...there is a need for medical attention.

There is no medical insurance for stunted spiritual growth. But there is a hospital in which this can be cured. It is called the church, being involved in a community of believers who are growing through their own brokenness, who are experiencing healing spiritually, emotionally, physically. Spiritual growth is not reactive. It is proactive. The Bible exhorts believers to work out their salvation with fear and trembling.

For me, this weekend was a growth weekend. I actually let my guard down in the group of women. I laughed (so much so that the people in the room next door banged on the wall to shut us up.) I cried so hard that my head felt like it was hit with a bat. I got angry. I was real.

I've been hiding behind something...the identity that I've carried with me from my previous church. I didn't realize was the weight of the identity that I was portraying. I was wearing chain mail. This weekend, the chain mail was removed and melted down without me even realizing what was occuring.

This morning as I was getting dressed for church, I found myself much less self-conscious of what I wore. In church, I found myself surrounded by women. And I wasn't freaking out. I was in my element.

Back to the call to action. I have something to say, to add, to contribute. To women, to men, to the church, to the unchurched. I've known this since I was seven years old, preaching to my stuffed animals. Perhaps I've been surpressing this knowledge; perhaps hiding from the message that I have in my spirit. Now that the chain mail has been removed, I need to get the word out.

When the Potter decides that it is time, the word will go forth.