Where Have I Been Living?

Jonah 1:3

But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. 

Most people have heard about the story of Jonah. The usual focus is on the fact that he was swallowed by a "great fish" and spent 3 days and nights in its belly. The theological import of that part of the tale is that it serves as a type of Jesus' death, burial and resurrection.

As I sat in my church service this morning, Jonah 1:3 seemed to stand out to me. Our pastor was making the point that God has a determined purpose for us at times in our life and whether or not the door that He places before us is ornate and comfortable or rugged and difficult, we should trust Him and walk through it. Jonah chose not to do so.

Jonah was a comfortable, popular prophet in Israel, a VIP of sorts. He was very pleased to stay in that role...and then "the Word of the Lord came to Jonah" (Jonah 1:1) This Word that Jonah heard would stir him from his comfortable existence and plunge him into the heart of the most evil empire on the face of the earth. God told him to go to Nineveh, the capitol of the Assyrian Empire and preach repentance to them.

Jonah knew about the Assyrians and their well-pulicized atrocities. In his mind, he couldn't fathom the chance that God could possibly want to forgive them. So Jonah said no to God and...

...Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. 

It is interesting that Jonah headed for Tarshish, a destination that was in the exact opposite direction from God's door to Nineveh. It is also interesting that, by coincidence, there was a ship waiting for Jonah going to that very place.

All this talk about running from God got me thinking about my own life. My grandmother had once told me that I would grow up to be a preacher (i laughed!). Through her prayers and others, I finally found Christ as my Savior and ended up at a Christian college. Once upon a time, I had served as a minister of youth for three different churches. At the point where I left the last ministerial position, I took a different path and have functioned as a radiographer and educator for the past 22 years.

The question I found myself asking this morning was...Have I been living in Tarshish? Don't get me wrong...I'm not claiming to be some great prophet that ran from a hard task placed on him by God. But I do see some personal similarities in the story. I just know that I am wondering now if I may have missed a door and ended up in Tarshish. For Jonah, Tarshish was his attempt to flee from God and not do the task assigned. 

I wonder if Tarshish can also be the place people settle for when they don't really see the task...when they are not sure if God has actually placed a particular door in front of them. I don't believe that I actually tried to go in an opposite direction from God. I have still had chances to minister for Him in many different ways where I am today. This morning's message just made me think...did I take the path of least resistance and end up in the less than optimal place that God intended?

Don't get me wrong...I have enjoyed the years I have spent here in this community, serving patients and mentoring students and (yes) ministering in His church. This morning's message just stirred some thoughts.
There is not regret in the thinking, merely a curiosity of how I responded to doors or the perception of the lack thereof.