Article September 1, 2014 Issue

What Jonah can teach us

Jake Lowe

I have found the old adage “There are no atheists in a foxhole” to be true. When everything around us offers no help, or we feel helpless, we find ourselves letting go of the notion that we can do something of our own will, and then we place our lives completely in God’s hands. Time and time again I have found that when I let go, or humble myself by releasing my own will or sense of ego, things turn around.

The story of Jonah is a terrific example of letting go. Jonah was called by God to go to the city of Nineveh to preach. Instead of going, Jonah hops on a boat to Tarshish in order to escape “the presence of the Lord” (Jonah 1:3). While he’s on the boat, a storm hits, and the crew casts lots to see who was cursed and brought the storm upon them. Predictably, Jonah is revealed as the cursed one, and he willingly offers to be cast into the sea to save the crew.

As if that weren’t bad enough, upon Jonah’s being thrown into the ocean, a “great fish” swallows him, and he spends three days and nights in its belly (1:17). It’s written that while in the fish’s belly Jonah turns to God: “I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice” (Jonah 2:2). The fish then vomits him out onto the shore, and he continues on with his original task of going to Nineveh.