She Connects: The Jonah Complex

Charles Stanley once said, “Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that results in stagnation. I have known talented people who procrastinate indefinitely rather than risk failure. Lost opportunities cause erosion of confidence, and the downward spiral begins,”
Recently I went through an experimental period with my DVR, and I happened to stumble upon a show that caught my interest briefly. The show featured one of my favorite actresses from my younger years, Elizabeth Gilles, and despite me being moderately confused about the episode’s plot due to coming in nearly 20-minutes into the 30-minute program, I was immensely intrigued by a concept introduced.

During a heart-to-heart moment between Gilles’ character and her father, the daughter began to explain to father about how his fear of success is tied to The Jonah Complex.

There is a popular biblical story often referred to as the story of Jonah and the Whale. In short, the story goes as follows:

God sent Jonah to Ninevah. Nineveh was an enemy of Jonah’s country, Israel. So, Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh.

Jonah tried to escape God. He tried to travel elsewhere, by ship. But there was a terrible storm. Jonah knew that God had caused the storm. So, he asked the sailors to throw him into the sea. But Jonah did not drown, because God sent a whale (large fish) to swallow Jonah. Then, Jonah prayed to God again. He thanked God, who had rescued him (Jonah 2). And God caused the fish to return Jonah to the dry land.*

So, Jonah went to Nineveh. He warned the people that they must confess their evil deeds to God. Otherwise, God would destroy their nation. The people obeyed Jonah. So, God forgave the people in Nineveh. God did not destroy Nineveh at this time.

But Jonah was sad, because Nineveh was his enemy. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh. But God told Jonah that God cares about the people from every nation.

The Jonah Complex is a theory created by Abraham Maslow—first introduced the theory in his book titled, “The Farther Reaches of Human Nature—that is based off of the famous biblical story.

The theory suggests that despite understanding our duties and responsibilities (in life and as children of God), we often try to evade our missions out of fear—similarly to Jonah.

“It is certainly possible for most of us to be greater than we are in actuality. We all have unused potentialities or not fully developed ones…So often we run away from the responsibilities dictated (or rather suggested) by nature, by fate, even sometimes by accident, just as Jonah tried—in vain—to run away from his fate…We are generally afraid to become that which we can glimpse in our most perfect moments, under the most perfect conditions, under conditions of greatest courage.” –Abraham Maslow in “The Farther Reaches of Human Nature”

We are afraid of the unknown. As humans, it’s considered natural, but before reading this theory had I never stopped to consider the effects that my fear was putting on me fulfilling my dreams or aspirations, nevertheless my destiny.

There are so many things that I wanted to do, and probably could have done, but I allowed myself to be crippled my own fear.

I held myself back because it seemed better to do that instead of facing my problems head on and accepting the consequence that followed.

In life our possibilities are endless, yet we limit ourselves due to trepidation that we carry on our own.

How are your fears holding you back from walking in your purpose?

What can you do to unbind yourself from the chains of fear?

*The credit for the summary of Jonah goes to: http://www.easyenglish.info/bible-outline/jonah-summary.htm