Going Overboard

You’ve heard the story about Jonah and how he ended up in the belly of a big fish. If you remember, God had a specific call for Jonah.  He was a prophet, so he should have expected a call from God, however he did not like what task God gave him. He was supposed to go to his enemies in Ninevah with a message from God to repent of their wickedness.

Jonah headed in the opposite direction, taking a ship that was bound for Tarshish. He thought he could get away from God, but while Jonah was asleep in the hold, the ship ran into a huge storm that threatened to break it apart. The sailors were frightened for their lives. They had to have prayed to every god they knew. The captain woke Jonah and begged him to pray to his god, not knowing to which one Jonah would pray. We don’t know if Jonah didn’t pray, refused to pray, or what. The crew then cast lots to see whose fault the storm was. It fell on Jonah.

As frightened as the crew was, they took time to ask him questions: What was his profession? Where was he from? Who were his people? They didn’t jump on him. They wanted to understand so they could decide their course of action. Jonah told them to throw him into the sea, and the storm would calm down. They didn’t grab at this solution. They tried as hard as they could to save the ship without throwing Jonah overboard, but the storm strengthened. Finally, with prayers to Jonah’s God, they threw him overboard. That’s how he ended up in the belly of the big fish.

Today, I heard a brand new insight into this scene. Jonah knew he was the one who needed to go overboard. He could have jumped into the sea himself to save the crew and their ship; instead he waited until in desperation they threw him overboard. Jonah could have taken responsibility for himself, but he made the sailors take responsibility for him.

How hard it can be to take responsibility for ourselves, and our own actions, rather than to make others take it for us! Jonah was trying to avoid responsibility all around. He didn’t want to go to his enemies with God’s message. He ran away. He made the sailors throw him overboard. Where in my life, where in your life, are the Jonah tendencies? How am I, how are you, holding back from answering the challenge? How can I, how can you, take responsibility for answering God’s call in this moment?