Unpacking our Internal Bags

This week’s “Wow!” moment in Jonah:

“We can pack our internal bags just as quickly as Jonah packed his and be on a boat headed in the opposite direction of God’s will even while we are in the throes of everyday life.” - Priscilla Shirer

Would you agree that running from God is easier to spot if buying a ticket to Tarshish, but a bit more difficult when it’s our heart/mind that’s doing the packing?

I may not hold a ticket in my hand, but I am, unfortunately, much like Jonah when it comes to mentally running from God. Perhaps we're not alone in this boat?

• We properly position our bottoms, Bibles, and bible studies for quiet time—all the external necessities in place—without realizing that our heart, the one internal necessity, is playing hooky.
  

• We go to church, but rather than expecting God's presence to be active, alive, and eager to speak, we perceive a faint mental click in the background, signaling the proverbial ✓ being placed in the “I went to church this week” box instead.
  

• God prompts us to speak truth, shift priorities, __________ (fill in the blank), but instead of running towards God's desires, we choose instead to get busy, avoid prayer and other believers, or dive into a new addiction (do Junior Mints count?).
  

To unlock the internal luggage, we simply need to confess to God the specific ways we've tried to flee (He already knows!), ask for forgiveness, receive it, and head for the Ninevah God has planned for each of us. No luggage required!

I begin this week with a fresh appreciation in knowing there is no place—physically, emotionally, or spiritually—that my heavenly Father is not already there. (Psalm 139)

How about you?

- Photo courtesy of Lifegroup413.org