What's Your Reaction to God's Instruction?

But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. 

Jonah 1:3

Has God ever given you an assignment that you really didn't like?

Maybe it's moving to a new city. Staying single longer than you planned. Remaining faithful in an unfulfilling marriage. Or possibly enduring a job you just don't like.

More than once, God's assignment or timing didn't really line up with what I had planned.

And this was the case with Jonah.

God gave Jonah an assignment to preach to the wicked people of Nineveh. For many reasons, he didn't want to go.

And I can't say that I blame him. Nineveh was a wicked city. His life would be endanger.

So what did Jonah do? He ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

My disobedience might have looked a little different. I would have taken the safer and lazier option of staying at home, bolting the door.

However, it really doesn't matter what route you take. If it's not where God told you, it's still disobedience.

Most often, we don't hear audible instructions from God. And the Bible doesn't spell out every answer for specific problems. So we get caught up in the gray areas — like who to marry, what job to take, where to live or how to spend your money.

Yet I’m reminded the Bible is full of instruction. We often don't spend enough time there to learn what God says. Plus, we're forgetful. So what if I studied Jonah as a child. I will learn new lessons each time I study the Bible.

That's what's so amazing about God's Word. As we meditate on it, God makes it relevant to our situation.

So, how do you respond to God's instruction? Or do you even know what it is?

I encourage you to spend some time reading Jonah today. It's a short book. Even if you read it long ago, ask God to make it fresh this time.

Stacy