Frustration and anger are emotions the prophet Jonah embraced. The Lord told Jonah to go and preach in Nineveh and warn them that their city would be destroyed in forty days, because of their wickedness. Jonah tried to flee away from God. He did not want to warn Nineveh, because he wanted God to destroy them. Jonah hated the Ninevites more than he loved God.
So Jonah defied God, but eventually he did go and preach in Nineveh. Nineveh repented and God decided not to punish them. Jonah was so angry he wanted to die when God showed his enemies mercy. Jonah cared more about a plant that gave him shade on a hot day than he did about the welfare of120,000 human beings.
Jonah 4:1-2
But it greatly displeased Jonah and he became angry. 2 He prayed to the Lord and said, “Please Lord, was not this what I said while I was still in my own country? Therefore in order to forestall this I fled to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning calamity. NASU
This is an example of confused priorities and it can happen to us. Jonah recognized God’s qualities of grace and mercy, but he did not accept that God was right to extend his grace to Nineveh. Sometimes we look at other people and decide they are not worthy of the same kindness we want for ourselves. Then we take it upon ourselves to deny them what is right in violation of what God has taught us to do. God wants us to be merciful as he has been merciful to us.
Even Jesus, who was equal to God, did not do anything based on what he wanted. In everything Jesus submitted to his heavenly Father. Let’s try being obedient to the Lord. Let’s work at humbling ourselves and accepting the fact that our heavenly Father really does know what is best.