We know Jonah’s story. God wanted him to call the non-Jewish people of Nineveh to repent of their wicked ways and turn to the Lord. Jonah tried to escape God’s call and thereby ended up “in the belly of the fish three days and three nights” (Jon.1:17b) before being “spewed . . . out upon dry land.” (Jon.2:10b) Then, scripture tells us, “the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time.” (Jon.3:1)

God didn’t give up on Jonah. God doesn’t give up on us either. No matter how far we wander from “the still, small voice of God,” (I Kgs.19:12, KJV) the Holy One perseveres in calling us into the divine presence. Last week, we read the call story of the prophet Samuel who didn’t recognize the voice of God the first time he heard it, nor the second time. It was only after his mentor prepared him for the third time did he answer, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” (I Sam.3:1-10)

God delights when we take a leaf from Peter and Andrew as “immediately they left their nets and followed [Jesus]” when he called them. Yet when we find reasons to ignore the call or delay our affirmative response, the Holy One waits patiently and continues to reach out to us in other ways. God uses whatever it takes to get our attention, to shake us loose from our comfortable status quo, to open our eyes to the needs of those in the world around us.

Thank goodness we don’t have to fret our missed opportunities to incarnate God’s love in this place. We will get a second chance, or a third if that’s what it takes, to open the ears of our hearts to hear God’s call.