My team has just finished our time at our Peru ministry site. We worked with a local church helping with VBS, English club, participated in small groups, and got to be immersed in the culture. While this past month had really hard moments and good moments, the Lord has been reminding me of some beautiful things. Lately, God has been reminding me of Jonah.
We’ve all heard the story of Jonah and the giant fish. Jonah had a deep hatred for the people of Nineveh. So he refused to obey the Lord and preach to the Gentile nation. Instead Jonah ran away but people others in harms because of his hated and selfishness. Jonah eventually went to prophesy and only uttered 8 words. Begrudgingly Jonah said in Chapter 3 verse 4, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” The amount of people who repented then and there was all God and His Spirit moving and convicting them. He wanted to give these wicked people one last chance to repent.
We often stop after chapter three but we miss how amazing chapter four is. It’s a chapter that has really impacted me over the last few days. Chapter four starts with Jonah telling God how angry he is with the Lord. Jonah knows who God is and his heart. Jonah 4:2 says, “He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.” Jonah was angry at the Lord. He knew that God was compassionate. Jonah didn’t want for the Lord to have compassion and love for his enemies.
After Jonah had seen how God moved and hundred upon hundreds of people repented and started following God, Jonah went and sulked and sat outside of Nineveh. God was kind enough to give Jonah some shade to make him more comfortable. But God was teaching Jonah a lesson. A worm came and destroyed the plant. Jonah was so angry with this that he said he was angry enough to die. God responded with this in Jonah 4:10-11, “You feel sorry about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and died quickly. But Nineveh has more than 120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals. Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”
God cared enough about Jonah to show him where he was wrong. God in His grace reminded Jonah why Nineveh was so important. Even though these people were wicked, God still wanted to give them a chance to repent. God just had thousands of people repent and turn back to Him. He didn’t have to chase after Jonah but He did. God chased after His wayward prophet. Jonah 4 reminds me of how our God chases the one. Our God still chases the wayward prophet. The one who is burnt out. The one who has left the church. The one who is questioning if God is still good. He is chasing you. The Holy Spirit keeps reminding me that God is so deeply in love with His people. He even chases His wayward prophets when they are angry with Him and He takes the time to help them understand.
Being on the field for eight months has had its ups and downs. This past month for me was hard and challenging in ways I didn’t expect. If I’m being honest I felt kind of burnt out after and just really needed some rest. Maybe I can see a little of myself in Jonah. I was ready to be done and felt far from God. But God keeps reminding me how He still chases the one. He’s still chasing me and He’s still chasing you. He’s patient enough to take the time to explain things to me and sit with me no matter my emotion.
I want to encourage whoever is reading this. Maybe you feel far from God or are a wayward prophet. Know that the God of the universe is still chasing you and loves you deeply.
Update: My squad is currently at debrief, which is a time to rest and debrief our past three months. In a few days we will be headed into a burn which will be a time where we minister to the Lord. For seven days, twenty four hours a day, we will be in prayer and worship growing closer to God and loving Him well. Please pray as we go into that God refines us and changes hearts. After the burn we’ll be headed to Africa!
Hi Emma, thanks so much for this update and the beautiful reminder that its not about us and our emotions, it’s about God and his love for His children and heart for the lost. Keeping you in our prayers!
Hi Emma!! Just wanted to say, thank you for your update. Your inside into the prophet Jonah led me into a time of meditation and pray with the Lord. I think You will be able to write a devotional when you get back to the states. Keep moving forward. God us using you in many ways!!
Hello Sweet One! I’m just seeing your post now….my email has been offline since Peru. I love this message you send to all of us. HE is still chasing you and all of us! I’m so thankful that He never gives up on any of us. Loved being able to get my arms around you in Peru! He has amazing things for you in Africa, Em. Keep a laser focus on Him! Love you!