Since the fall of mankind at the beginning of creation sinful man has tried to run and hide from God (Genesis 3:8-10). It is the natural thing for sinners to do. Our sins separate us from God (Isaiah 59:1)  and our running from God reveals that we have sinned.

Running from God is vain – Jonah 1
Jonah discovered that he couldn’t win at the game of Hide & Seek with God. God sees and knows everything (Prov. 15:3, 1 John 3:20). God is everywhere (Psalm 139:7-12) and is All-Powerful (Revelation 19:6). There is no place that we can hide from God that he cannot see. God declared this through the Prophet Jeremiah saying “Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD (Jeremiah 23:24 ESV).

Running from God is tiring – Jonah 1:5
Jonah “laid down and was fast asleep” not because he had a perfect peace but because he was exhausted from running from God. Any person running from God and resisting His will is going to get tired and weary. It is exhausting of one’s strength to remain in sin. David wrote about his experience with this drain of life and strength because his sin saying “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer Selah” (Psalm 32:3-4 ESV).

Running from God may lead you to a storm – Jonah 1:4
Sometimes storms and trials come because you’re walking upright before God and sometimes they come because we rebel against His will. So whether you’re right with God or running from God storms and trials will come. But often we find ourselves in a storm or trial because of our disobedience and this was the case with Jonah.

Running from God will result in divine discipline – Jonah 2:3
God was not going to let Jonah live comfortably in a state of rebellion towards the will of God. God lovingly made Jonah miserable. Charles Spurgeon said “God never allows His children to sin success-fully, and Jonah is proof of the truth of that statement”. “For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives” (Hebrews 12:6 ESV). Like a loving father who disciplines his children, so God does with His own children who rebel against Him.

Running from God affects those around you – Jonah 1:5-16
Even the pagan sailors on the ship Jonah was aboard discovered somebody on that ship was in sin. Your sin affects those around you, and especially those closest to you. Often your friends and family can tell something is wrong when you are running from God.

Running from God reveals a disconnection from God’s heart-Jonah 4:1-2
“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the LORD and said, “O LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” (Jonah 4:1-2 ESV).
Jonah’s actions revealed where his heart was at and it didn’t line up with God’s heart. God delighted in showing mercy to Nineveh but Jonah had great displeasure that the city wasn’t destroyed.

If you are running from God right now stop and consider how good God has been to you. God has given you the grace of life, breath, food, health, family, friends etc… God has best displayed His goodness to you by sending His Son Jesus to suffer & die in your place and reconcile you back to Himself. Jesus experienced death on your behalf and rose from the dead three days later so that you may live forever with Him. Taste and see that God is good by placing your trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Call upon Christ for Salvation. Let His goodness lead you to repentance. Run to the Father not away from Him.