Summer At Sea: Week 7 Day 2

Jonah 1: 5-7

5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.

But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”

7 Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.” They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.

If you are a parent, I’m sure you’ve experienced your child avoiding you like the plague if they know they have done wrong. Or, if they are in trouble, they may not look directly at you when you are talking to them.

In this part of Jonah’s story, we see him doing the opposite of what most would do when on a boat in the middle of a severe storm. Instead of worrying and helping the sailors throw cargo, he is able to go take a nap under the ship. At this point, it is clear he is not only exhausted from his trip but is avoiding the issue that his unfaithfulness has caused, a severe storm. He cannot face God.

Is it easy to listen to the Holy Spirit? Not always, no. But when we falter and don’t listen, we must return to God to ask for forgiveness and continue on our faith journey. Stepping away and being passive just may cause more havoc and chaos in our lives. None of us are perfect, but rather, we should turn back to God when we realize we have faltered.