The God Who PursuesSample

Chasing Without Running - Part 2

The blue-collar workers are frightened and screaming out to their gods. They are getting no immediate answers, and so they begin to chuck their luggage and all of the packages overboard. They're desperate and hoping that by lightening the load, they'll push through the storm faster because they can see clear water. But this ship is being whipped around and in danger of sinking.

The captain goes below deck to find out what else they can throw overboard, and he sees Jonah down there sleeping. He grabs his shoulder while shaking him, violently, "Bro, seriously? How can you sleep right now? Don't you feel this ship getting ready to flip? Pray to your God, like the rest of us, and MAYBE we can make it out of this alive!"

Back upstairs, the workers decide they will cast lots to see who is responsible for this crazy storm. The lot lands on Jonah, and he sighs and hangs his head because he knows it's not dumb luck. 

Everyone looks at Jonah with their hands out, "Umm, brother, why? Why did you bring this on us? What do we do now?"

Jonah had already told them he was running from his God, and now he says, "Toss me overboard. The storm will stop."

At first, they look at each other and say, "Nope, we're not murderers. We're just going to row this thing out."

But the more they row, the worse the storm becomes, and it seems like they are getting no closer to shore. Finally, they pray to Jonah's God, asking Him not to punish them for killing Jonah. They throw Jonah overboard, and the storm stops.

The storm stops so suddenly that they become afraid and makes sacrifices to God, yeah, Jonah's God. 

Have you ever seen a sudden shift? Sometimes amid storms, it feels like you are being called to do something that makes entirely no sense. In fact, it may even seem like the sacrifice you are being urged to make hurts you in a significant way.

God's pursuit of you may involve roadblocks and storms. And in the midst of it, He may ask you to do something which appears more dangerous than logical. Even when you are the one on the run, His pursuit requires your obedience to navigate the storm.