Jonah-I am Alive!

Mary Vee
Jonah 3

From Jonah's Soggy Journal

Photo Courtesy

I had cried out to the Lord and He saved me.

The sun warmed my skin as it never had before. The air smelled fresher than ever. Even the sand crusted on my face felt good. You would say that too if you had been trapped in the belly of a great fish for three days!

Just thinking about those days of darkness, stinky smells, and weird stomach noises upsets my stomach.

I pushed my way back into the water to rinse off the sand and pulled pieces of seaweed off my clothes. As the warm sea breeze dried my skin, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob spoke to me. "Go to the great city of Nineveh and tell them the message I give you."

The Almighty God already knows my opinion of the people from Nineveh. They are cruel and threaten to overtake our land. They'd turn our families into slaves, those they didn't kill. He knows I don't want to help them. 

No need saying another word. 

No need fighting Him or trying to run away. 

This time I may not survive a fish eating me.

If you haven't notice, my attitude about this is not good--and in truth I wish He would ask someone else. But since He didn't, I searched the beach for a branch, trimmed the twigs away, and began my walk.

My bag remained at the bottom of the sea. I had no food or anything else with me. I recognized the area, though, and found I was not far from my home or the trade route which led from Egypt to--sigh--Nineveh. 

No one in their right mind, not even a well know prophet such as myself who has worked with king Jeroboam II of Israel would dare travel the trade route alone. There are too many bandits along the way. My plan is to find a caravan, join them, and journey the fifteen miles a day. The trip should take about two months to complete.

I set out toward the trade route and waited for the next caravan. Wishing, in a way, one would never come. But I knew better. God really wants me to give this message to Nineveh.

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1. Where did Jonah land?
2. What did God ask Jonah to do?
3. What did Jonah have with him for the trip?
4. How did Jonah plan to get to Nineveh?
5. Why didn't Jonah want to go?