1 Kings 19 is a great chapter. It is one of those passages that every time I read it, it teaches me something. I learn something new every time. The Lord never ceases to teach me something through it. In the chapter before, we find Elijah on Mount Carmel (mmmm... Carmel). We see the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal with their altar and sacrifice, crying out to their gods. They cried, and yelled, called, jumped on the altar, and cut themselves, begging their gods from morning to afternoon. And, of course, nothing happened. But, nearby stood Elijah. All alone, yet the presence of God was soon to be made known. He stood near the altar of the Lord, with his sacrifice. But he didn't stop there, verse 32 says, "...and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed." So, he made a big ditch, or trench, around the altar, and filled it with water. He also told the men to "fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood. And he said, Do it a second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time, and they did it the third time." (18.33-34) The altar and the sacrifice are drenching wet with twelve barrels of water, along with a water-filled ditch surrounding it. What happens next is incredible. "...E-li-jah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again." (18.36-37) Then, out of nowhere but God, "...the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench."(38) Everything, the sacrifice, the water, the altar itself with the stones were consumed by the fire. The jaws of the followers of Baal I'm sure were dragging the ground. It must have been an incredible sight to see. Once the smoke cleared, and "...all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God."(39) Elijah is on the mountain top, literally, and has just witnessed God show Himself true in a great, awe-inspiring way, but despite the great victory the Lord had just won through him, Elijah soon finds himself taken to a very low point in his life.
We often find ourselves in the very same position Elijah has. We've been through the valley and come out on the other side holding His hand. We've seen the salvation and safety of the Lord, we've seen Him do miracles in our own lives. We've felt Him very much alive and real in our lives,and nothing could prove to us otherwise. We live on the mountain top, in awe with God.Why then, after all this, do we find ourselves in the valley yet again? Everything we have known and experienced is tossed aside as we hide within our hole of doubt and distrust. We are so...... 'not-smart'!!!!! Coming back to First Kings, in verses 1-4 of chapter 19, Elijah heard the threatening message of Jezebel, lost courage, and began to run for his life. At the first sign of opposition, we often tend to immediately shrink back and run from the problem. I hate confrontation, I am more passive. I would rather say nothing, forgive, forget, or ignore instead of confronting the issue. Here, Elijah reacts to confrontation with fear, and takes a run for it. (1 Kings 19.4) Elijah is exhausted. He is tired of running. Tired of everything. His physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional needs are calling out to him, and he cannot supply them. He sits under a Juniper tree to die. "It is enough", he says. He just wants to die. He begs God to take his life from him; to take it all away. Basing his decision on how he feels, he quits. First, emotions lie. They can blur the truth, and we do things we later regret. Yet, they are always our first source of information we gather from a situation. The Bible has much to say about endurance, patience, and strength in the Christian life. Hard time WILL come, in this life you WILL have tribulation. When something life-rocking and unexpected happens, don't fall apart, look at Who He is, and don't give up. Finish this race, not in your own strength, but in His strength. We are WEAK, but He is strong. The last 5K I ran, was an intense growing time for me, in every way. I use my runs as time to think and pray. I can't explain it, all I know is, through those months of training my body to finish the race, He was preparing my heart for many hard lessons I would have to learn for my race; the race of my life. I found strength to finish the 5K race, while finding strength to finish the Christian race. It will be hard. Pain will happen. I hurt worse during that race than any of my practice runs. But, He gives grace to push through the pain. Instead of giving up and when you feel tired, His grace gives you the strength to push harder. You'll feel like you're dying, that the pain is too much to bear, and you can't take another step, but He is right there. Cheering you on. Helping you along. Don't quit, allow His grace to strengthen you. In verse 5, exhausted from running, he falls asleep. In our lives, exhaustion can lead to an increase in our problems. When we are tired, every little thing gains huge proportion. Sleep deprivation can lead to many problems, and it is often our fault. Now, I know many people who struggle with insomnia, I am one of them. After a few nights, or more, tossing and turning all night, I know I can get touchy, nervous, and irritable. Thus, every little issue is a BIG deal. Lack of sleep is never a good thing. Exhausted? Get to sleep! Also in verse 5, it says an angel touched him. This portion really stands out to me. The verses seem to mean, the angel touched Elijah to wake Him up. But I'm getting more than just that from this verse. In others' time of need, we need to touch them. Not literally poke them, but we need to touch their lives. It's often overlooked how much a small gesture can mean to a person. An encouraging word can change the course of a persons day, week, or life. A caring gesture can be just the thing someone needs. Take the time to touch the lives of those around you. Verses 5-6 show us that God provided food, water, and in verse 8, He provided rest as well for Elijah. God knows our needs, and He has promised to provide for them. Elijah was thirsty, hungry, and tired; God provided food, water, and the rest he needed. What we need in this life to carry on in the race, the Lord knows and He has the means to take care of us. No need to freak out upon the first moment a need arises. God doesn't neglect you. He won't forget about you. Whatever your need is, He will provide for it in His own way, and in His own timing. Verse 7 of chapter 19, the angel of the Lord tells Elijah, "the journey is too great for thee." As with us, the journey of life is too great for us to handle. Alone. The strongest, most stable, rugged Christian needs the Lord. They're the way they are because of Him. The journey of life is too much for us, but what is impossible with men is not impossible with God. We cannot make it one second of life on our own. There is no possible way. We need Him every moment of every day for the rest of our lives. Yes, we are weak, but behind us, is a strong God. In verse 8, it tells us that Elijah was strengthened by the providence of the Lord. In our weakness, we tend to doubt God. We doubt His love, His care, His guidance, protection, power.... everything. We wonder where that promised strength is...... when we have all the strength we need in Him. His grace is sufficient. Maybe that strength is actually when we realize we can't do anything, and we must stay so close to Him to make it through each moment. Maybe that strength is actually the strength of our faith. Nevertheless, Elijah was strengthened by God, and He was there for Elijah, He will be there for me. Despite the aid of the Lord, (vs 8) he continued to run. The Lord had proven Himself faithful and true to Elijah, He was able to take care of Him, yet Elijah continued to run from his problems. Quit running! Quit running from your problems (or consequences). What are you afraid of? Quit hiding from those who hate you. Face them with the love and courage of the Lord. Quit running from God. If you're going to run, run to Him. Is anything to hard for the Lord? After all He's done, you can't trust Him to take care of you now? Has He ever given you any reason to doubt Him? Then trust Him. He will take care of you this time as well. You think after all these times He will leave you alone to fend for yourself? He promised, He would never leave you. He can't lie. (vs. 9) God asks Elijah, what are you doing here? He already knew the answer, but He asked it to get Elijah, and us, to thinking. What is Elijah doing there? Running away. Out of fear, cowardliness, and depression, he finds himself far away from where He should be. But, what if Christ would ask each of us the same question? What are you doing here? What are you doing here at this place, with these people? What are you doing here, in a shadow of doubt and fear? What are you doing here....... without Him? ....Well? (vs. 9) Christ asks Elijah to tell Him everything. He asks us to do the same. If you need someone to listen, talk to Him. His heart is always ready for you to pour out yours to Him. He's listening all hours of the night. When your heart is overwhelmed and burdened, pour it out to Him. At all seasons of life, tell Him everything. He's looking at you right now, anticipating for your call. His heart is yearning for yours. Tell Him everything. Seriously. Now. (vs. 10& 18) "I am the only one left, I am alone", Elijah cries. But the Lord then proves to Him, He is not the only one. Trust me, you aren't the only one trying to serve Him and stand for what's right, there are always others! Who am I?! However, even if you were the only person, you would still have One standing next to you, and that would be enough. (vs. 11-12) The Lord passed by. When we are troubled or struggling, isn't it great when the Lord passes by! We cry to Him, and in response are long waves of silence. But those moments when the Lord passes by, they make it all worth it. Those "God moments" are what make the Christian life real to you. Christ cannot be explained, only experienced. I understand, Christianity is not based on 'feeling', but there are those moments you can't explain, but without a doubt, you know it was Him. (Vs. 12) God moves in a quiet way. There was a great, and strong wind, an earthquake and a fire, but He was the still small voice. God uses little things to accomplish His purpose. "Great doors are hung on tiny hinges". God uses small things to open mighty doors. We often see God as the powerful, unapproachable God. We expect Him to show us a 'sign' in a big way. But oftentimes, He uses a still small voice inside us. He won't fight for your attention. He won't fight to be heard through the noise of the world, but He patiently and continually calls in His still, small voice. In verse 15, He tells Elijah to go back; go back to where He was to be.... He had more work for him to do. The phrase "bloom where you are planted" stands out here. Countless pastors, and church workers "church-hop", never staying in a church longer than a year or so. When it gets 'boring', or hard, they leave. But it's not right. God places us where He wants us, and until He leads us different, He wants us to stay where we are. He has work for us to do where we are. Don't give up on it simply because it becomes hard. Secondly, I see, when we find ourselves on a road we didn't plan, and shouldn't be on, go back. When we have gone astray, go back. When we've left Christ to follow our own plans, go back. Go back to where you went wrong, go back to Him, and start again.
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Lizzy parkerMarriage.
Motherhood. Ministry. Missions. Archives
January 2023
|