Recruit and Recruiter....

The running away of Jonah is generally perceived as one which was unusual and something which we are unlikely to fall into. Jonah, was already a prophet, and to one whom God was communicating. He was possibly involved in doing what God wanted him to do earlier, and now, taking this decision to run away from God’s plan and get away in a ship – was it unusual or does this draw parallels in our own life?

To me this does not look unusual! As you keep walking into God’s purposes, there comes a time, when some of the directions He is pushing us into are seemingly irrational! Having questions on whether this is the right way to go, is this really from God might be common experiences for many us…At least for me – yes. Ingrained into our nature, is the nature to rebel and run away, the nature to rationally look at things, the nature to take a de-route, trying out alternatives before coming back to the right path!

But the ability to sleep in the midst of a storm, deep in the hold of the ship, that to a deep sleep, when he knows that he is taking a de-route is something I have not experienced. It is generally sleeplessness that I experience! Being caught before he goes off to a deep sleep might have been better, maybe he could have escaped the belly of the fish!

But it is that belly of the fish which saved him. A protected belly where the pain he was going through was a redemptive pain, a deep pain and anguish from which he will be vomited out! And he comes out as the vomitus of a fish, cleans himself and goes off to Nineveh. A reluctant preacher, one whose arm have been twisted by God to obey, by His relentless pursuit…And things happen despite Jonah!

At least after this major turnaround, he should have rested. Yes he did, but he was restless internally…. The desire for predictability, control, results as per his desire, rational and realistic outcomes did not allow him to rest….an inner restlessness leading to an external list of complaints. Somehow He still had not understood the heart of God….

Running, restless, reluctant recruit…..does it sound familiar…?

That is not the message of the book of Jonah!  It is about the recruiter….One who recruits a running, restless, reluctant staff and then relentlessly pursues him, so that his heart and the recruiter’s heart are aligned for the same purposes and is pained by the same pain…..

God as an HR professional today would have failed the test of all performance assessment if the quality of the recruit was a KPA for the recruiter…..but God’s HR is different from today’s HR. And he had the wind, the fish, the plant and the worm as tools, to train the recruit...