Week of Prayer, Day 4: The Call to Adventure
Meditate on the opening lines of Jonah, below:
Now the word of Yahweh came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.”
But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of Yahweh.
But Yahweh hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up.
Jonah 1v1-4 (ESV)
— Devotional —
Of all the places a Jewish prophet might have been sent, the worst was Nineveh.
Yet that is exactly where God sent Jonah.
Nineveh was a large and prominent city in what is now modern-day Mosul, Iraq, the capital of the Assyrian Empire. It was powerful, prosperous, and strategically important. But it was also infamous for violence, injustice, and brutality (note the reference to “evil” in v2). Don’t think of a artsy cultural hub; think of an empire built on conquest and fear. Less New York; more Gotham City. It was not the kind of place a faithful Israelite would volunteer to visit.
More than that, the Ninevites did not worship Israel’s God. They spoke a different language, lived within a different culture, and bowed to different gods. Nineveh represented everything strange, powerful, and threatening to Israel. To this dangerous and idolatrous city, God says, “Jonah, go.”
Jonah’s response: “No thanks.”
Where does Jonah go instead? To Tarshish.
Tarshish was, in many ways, the opposite of Nineveh. Likely located on the Mediterranean in southern Spain, it was known as a wealthy trading port. Scripture describes it as a place of precious metals and exotic goods, even “peacocks and apes” (1 Kings 10v22). For someone seeking a safe haven, Tarshish would have seemed attractive: prosperous, coastal, and far removed from Assyrian brutality.
At 2,500 miles away, Tarshish was as far from Nineveh as one could get.
There was just one problem. In running to Tarshish, Jonah runs “away from the presence of Yahweh” (v3).
And for a prophet, that’s no safe haven.
“Life is a highway.”
— Rascal Flatts
They say that life is a journey. But what kind?
For many of us, life resembles the journey of taking a vacation. The goal of vacation is comfort, ease, and settling in for a long, luxurious stay. There may be minor inconveniences—getting there can be a hassle—but by and large, life should feel like a breeze. Life-as-vacation maps neatly onto our modern, convenience-obsessed, air-conditioned world. Vacation is a life lived for myself.
But in Scripture, life more closely resembles the journey of an epic adventure. The aim of adventure is not comfort, but courage. Not ease, but challenge. Not settling into luxury, but stepping into situations that force us to think quickly, solve problems, and serve a greater cause.
To be clear, there is nothing wrong with a literal vacation. Jesus himself practiced intentional withdrawal (see Mark 6v31). But for him, rest was always about return. He practiced intentional rest so that he could return to the grand adventure—refreshed in the Spirit, ready for what’s ahead.
Jonah had been called by God to adventure: to travel to Nineveh, risking his safety and facing his fears, to proclaim God’s message in the great cause of making Yahweh’s name known among the nations.
Instead, he chooses vacation.
Ease. Comfort. A place far from God, all to myself.
And that is when the fish enters the story.
Then the word of Yahweh came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of Yahweh.
— Jonah 3v1-3
Everyone who encountered Jesus received a call to live adventurously for his greater cause.
For Peter, it meant leaving his nets and following him. For the rich young ruler, selling his possessions and giving to the poor. For Paul, traveling the world to preach the gospel. These were risky, uncertain leaps of faith that often led to hardship, imprisonment, and even death.
For Jonah, it meant going to Nineveh to proclaim God’s message. And when he did, the whole city turned to God (Jonah 3v5).
For us, the call may look different, but it is no less adventurous. It looks like representing Christ at school and in our careers. Standing up for truth and justice. Sacrificing time and resources to serve others. Vulnerably confessing sins and struggles. Sharing the gospel with friends and strangers.
The adventurous call of God has always required a willingness to leave behind certainty, predictability, and cultural idols such as comfort and ease.
The question is how we respond.
Do we drift with the currents of culture? Toward ease, toward comfort, toward a life with as few inconveniences and disruptions as possible? Toward vacation?
Or do we leave our comfort zone and walk the road to Nineveh, trusting that we play a small part in God’s grand mission of salvation and renewal?
Do we step into the adventure?
— Prayer —
God’s call does not begin with striving, but with listening. It begins where you are, in an awareness of his presence. Use this prompt to bring your heart before him and discern what obedience might look like today.
1. Listen for God’s call.
Jonah begins with this line: “Now the word of Yahweh came to Jonah…”
Before asking what you should do, take a quiet moment simply to listen. Where has God already placed you? What relationships, responsibilities, or spaces has he entrusted to you? What does it look like to represent the Lord in those areas?
2. Notice the pull toward “vacation.”
After Jonah heard God’s call, he fled to Tarshish. Often, we move toward comfort rather than obedience.
Without self-judgment, gently notice: When opportunities arise to represent Christ, what stirs in you? Hesitation? Anxiety? Distraction? A desire to avoid risks? Bring those responses honestly before God. Ask him to reveal what lies beneath them.
3. Pray for your friends.
Jonah’s mission to Nineveh was ultimately God’s work. God gave him the words, and God stirred the hearts of the people.
Spend time in unstructured prayer for those God has placed in your life. Pray for their faith, wholeness, and well-being. Release to God the burden of outcomes. Ask him to give you the words to say and to shape your heart toward them.
Trust that God is already at work in ways you cannot see.
