I could have saved myself a lot of trouble if I had listened to God the first time. My name is Jonah. Maybe you've read about me in the Bible. You haven't?? Well, let me tell you what happened!

It all started when God said, "Jonah, I want you to go to Nineveh. The people there have turned away from me, and are worshiping other gods. Go tell them that if they repent (that means to change and do the right thing), I will forgive them. But if they don't repent, I will destroy the entire town."

Now, I thought, "Yes, I've heard what a terrible town Nineveh is. If any city deserves to be destroyed, that is the one." But wait, I thought. If I don't go preach to Nineveh, they can't repent, and God will destroy them. That would be a good way to get rid of that terrible city. So I went down to the seashore and got on a big boat going the other way, away from Nineveh.

The first night we were out is when the trouble started. During the night a terrible storm came up. It started to rain, and the wind blew like I had never seen before. The storm was so bad that the people working on the boat were sure that we were going to sink. They started to throw things into the water to make the boat lighter. Someone threw out a chair, another threw a table, but nothing helped.

One of them finally said, "Someone on the boat must have done something really bad and God is punishing them. Let's see who it is." They cast lots (that's something like drawing straws) and found it was me who had disobeyed God. I told them everything that had happened.

"Throw me into the water and the storm will stop," I told them. But they didn't want to do that, so they kept on doing what they could to keep the boat from sinking. Finally, there was no other way out. They had to throw me into the water to save themselves and the boat. One man grabbed my arms and another grabbed my legs, and 1-2-3 and over the side I went into the cold water.

Down,
    down,
        down,

I went under the water. The water got colder and darker 'til I knew I was about to die.

Then, all of a sudden, I heard a big GULP! I had been swallowed by a big fish! Now, you've never been inside a fish before, so let me tell you what it's like. It's hot, wet, slimy, and it stinks like you can't believe because of all the plants and smaller fish the big fish had eaten. And I was right in there middle of it all.

Right away I started to pray to God. That's what I should have been doing all along. I prayed, "God, I know it was wrong to try to run away from you. I was wrong to go away from Nineveh instead of preaching to them like you told me to. Please forgive me."

I was in the belly of that fish for what seemed like a very long time. I found out later it was three days and three nights. Then, just as suddenly as I had been swallowed, the fish spit me up, right on dry land. I didn't waste any time getting to Nineveh this time, and I did just what God told me to do. I walked from one end of the city to the other saying, "Repent" (that means turn back to God and do what He says). "God isn't happy with what you're doing. Repent, or He will destroy this entire city." And do you know what happened? They all repented; from the king right down to the servants.

When God saw that the people of Nineveh had repented, He changed His mind about destroying them. He forgot the entire plan!

I said to God, "Lord, I knew this is what would happen! I knew you were a kind God and would change your mind! Just go ahead and kill me right now. I'd rather be dead than to be alive when nothing I said comes true." But God said, "Jonah, is it right for you to be angry about this?"

I tell you, I was plenty upset! I went up on a hill outside the city to watch what would happen. Maybe God would change His mind again, and destroy them after all. It was very hot up there, so I made a shelter of branches to keep the sun off of me.

When the branches dried up, God made a vine grow up to make some shade for me. I was very thankful for that. But then He sent a worm that ate through the roots of the vine, so it died, too. Now ALL my shade was gone! Not only that, but God also sent a strong wind that made it even hotter. "I'd rather die than put up with this heat," I complained.

"Now," God said, "is that anyway to talk? Do you have a right to be angry just because the vine died? YOU didn't put it there, anyway."

I said, "Yes, it is right for me to be angry enough to die."

But God always has the final word, and it's always right. "Jonah," He reminded me, "you feel sorry for yourself because your shelter was taken away. So why shouldn't I feel sorry for an entire city who had forgotten Me?"

As you think about what I did, remember: don't be so busy thinking about yourself that you forget about other people. They need God too. And God loves them just the same as He loves you.