4 And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?” – Jonah 4:4
Race
Yesterday, I wrote about my experience of getting “lost” in my recent race. I don’t necessarily try to spiritualize everything, but I do think when trials come our way it is better to look for their “redeeming” value than to “stew” over them. While my brief time off course reminded me of Demas, my emotions after the race reminded me more of Jonah.
Running a race is hard work. At least it is for me. A lot of time and energy goes into training. Every morning I am up before sunrise to begin my exercise routine. Before I pick up a weight or lace my shoes I step onto my scale in my weight room. When it comes to health, ignorance is not bliss. And besides, if I don’t know how much I weigh each morning how do I know how much I can eat each day?
Yes I know I am not normal. However, if what I see in the media is, I think that it is a compliment. I am not only a discipline freak, but I am also extremely competitive. Too much so. And as long as I am making confessions let me make one more: I am a poor loser. I would like to say it is because I don’t lose very often, but the truth may be more that I lose too frequently. Regardless, I wanted to play the “victim’ card after my race experience. I wanted to let someone know that I was misguided. I wanted “justice”. Why? Pride.
While I wanted to set the record straight, God asked me the same question he asked Jonah. Do you do well to be angry?
Race Benefit
As soon as I finished the race I sat on the curb next to the individual who finished third. MY THIRD! The first question I heard was, “Did you get lost?”. Despite the turmoil inside of me, I offered no excuse. “Yes, I took a wrong turn.” I congratulated my competitor on a good race and swallowed my pride. I would rather kill my pride than swallow it but until then…
As I drove home I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry at my immaturity. How long will I struggle with keeping things in a proper perspective? An eternal one. The races on Sunday weren’t just about friendly competition. They were being held to raise money for cancer research. The runners weren’t the only ones with sweat equity in the race. A lot of people put in a lot of hard work to pull off the two races. To many of them, the event was very personal. I don’t know how many of them have been personally affected by cancer, but I’m guessing the percentage would be high.
While I can’t speak on behalf of any of the race organizers or volunteers, I do know that since my mother was diagnosed over a year ago with stage four cancer, our world has been rocked. Which should have helped me keep the race itself in perspective. But unfortunately, pride has a way of blurring perspective.
Nursing Home
The day prior to my race, I helped move my ailing mother into a nursing home. I picked up my father and we headed to the hospital where my mother had been admitted for the previous three days. In her declining health, she is no longer able to stand on her own. Roughly a month ago she was still walking with a walker and now she is in a wheelchair.
Because of her condition, the medical staff decided my mother should go into a nursing home instead of going home. I don’t mean to overreact, but who knows if she will ever return home. Only God.
Don’t miss the irony. One day I am admitting my mother, who can no longer stand much less walk, into a nursing home, and the very next day I am upset because I “had to run” an extra four tenth of a mile!! I had no excuse for my anger, and unfortunately, I have a lot of company.
Running Jonah
God has no problem seeing the big picture or keeping things in perspective. He has a passion for lost souls. He desires and deserves to be eternally worshiped. Therefore, He chooses people to carry out His will in transforming sinners into worshipers. The people He chooses are weak. The people He chooses are a work in progress. People like you and I. People like Jonah.
I’m sure you are familiar with the story of Jonah. God went to Jonah with a job; go to Nineveh and preach to the heathens. Jonah had a problem with the job God gave him. Jonah had a problem with pride, and it manifested itself in rebellion. Instead of going to Nineveh, Jonah fled to Tarshish. Bad Idea.
God chased the wayward Jonah down with a storm. The storm forced Jonah out of the fleeing boat and into the troubled water where God had a great fish waiting for Jonah. For three days Jonah traveled “first class” in the belly of the great fish. I’m not sure how comfortable the accommodations were but it gave Jonah time to think and pray.
Nineveh Repents
After three days, which should have been sufficient time for Jonah to put things in their proper perspective, the great fish “deposited” him on dry ground. Before Jonah even had time to recover from his fish lag God again commanded him to go to Nineveh and preach. This time Jonah acquiesced.
Jonah reluctantly proclaimed God’s call to repentance and Nineveh responded. From the common people to the King, sackcloth became the fashion, ashes the floor covering, and fasting the diet plan.
Despite Jonah’s attitude, God blessed the preaching of His Word. A good reminder that it is not the vessel but the message that is most important. It is a good thing that it is the treasure that the clay jars hold that is efficacious because most of us are like Jonah. Cracked!
Hot Jonah
When God saw the sincere repentance of Nineveh, He withheld His impending wrath. When Jonah did not see the terrible wrath of God, he released his emotions. He was exceedingly displeased and angry (4:1).
While God was pleased to extend His mercy to Nineveh, Jonah was “hot” (literal translation). Like a good blacksmith, God decided to strike while the metal was hot.
Jonah, do you do well to be angry? Jonah, let’s look at this from an eternal perspective. Let’s look at this my My perspective!
God Strikes
Perched outside the city of Nineveh, Jonah made himself a comfortable “nest” from which he could get a bird’s eye view of the city. God provided a plant to make him more comfortable as he watched and waited from his perch. Sitting in his ease, Jonah was “very happy about the plant.” But his happiness would be short-lived.
Before sunrise the next day the plant was devoured by a worm that God provided. Much like He provided the big fish. In addition to having Jonah’s source of shade removed, God sent a scorching east wind and a blazing sun to beat down on Jonah. Now Jonah was literally hot!! So much so that he told God he wanted to die. A blacksmith strikes when the metal is hot, and eternal lessons are often learned on the brink of death.
Jonah, look at your concern over this temporary plant. Look at your concern for your creature comforts. Look at your emotions. You are angry over the loss of a simple plant that provided you temporary comfort. Do I not have the right to be more concerned about the lost people of this great city who are so spiritually ignorant that they cannot discern their right hand from their left?
Jonah didn’t need a bird’s eye view of the city, he needed a Godly view of the souls of its citizens.
Point Taken
Someone gave me bad advice; I turned left when I should have turned right and it upset me. I have confessed to you that for me, pride manifests itself in anger. But obviously, this isn’t about my road race. Nor is this even about me (or Jonah). This is about you. This is about us. In the final analysis, this is about growing up; being conformed to the image of Christ.
Whether or not we are in a hospital or nursing home, we are all on the brink of eternity. Check yourself. Where are you at spiritually? What are your struggles? What makes you “hot” like Jonah? We all have our triggers. Those things in our lives that expose our weaknesses.
Be careful. Your struggle may not be with anger, but anger, although perhaps the most “visible”, is not the only way pride manifests itself. It has other ugly heads that it will rear. None of which resembles Christ.
…we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ… – Ephesians 4:15