Veggie Tales

 The made for children cartoon "Jonah" in the Veggie Tales series struck me as I watched it with my 18-month-old son the other day. In the Bible, Jonah is described in the second paragraph of the book as running away from God. He looks like a cowardly villain.
 The Veggie version explained Jonah likely had just cause to bail on the Almighty. In his Jewish world, to go to Ninevah (as God told him to) and preach was like going to the terrorists for us and trying to rescue them from punishment. Jonah felt justified in damning the evil Ninevites. They were Assyrians, not Jews. They were wicked, not part of God's chosen people. So, when God told Jonah to preach repentance warnings to them, he bailed. He didn't want any part of God's forgiveness on the enemy.
 Now, it makes more sense. But you can't hide from God, even though you may run.
 Jonah, as we all know, gets caught in a storm while fleeing and is thrown overboard to save the rest of the crew on board. He goes in and the waters calm as poor ol' Jonah gets swallowed by a great fish.
 God has a way of capturing our attention, especially if we're running from our mission.
I decided to define my life mission and get prepared to speak in public and to  sell books I write. I have written words and spoken words, but I have let my words get dusty. I feel like I'm with Jonah, running away from the enemy instead of calling out for his soul.
 If God can choose to use a stubborn runaway like Jonah, who thinks he knows more than God about salvation and redemption, I can sure get in  the path of God's will and let Him use me for good.