Sunday, April 15, 2012

The Weary Times

"And he was afraid and arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, “It is enough; now, O LORD, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.”  1 Kings 19:3,4

Elijah was tired.  So tired that he was too tired to even vocalize the feeling.  There were no words to express this degree of consuming exhaustion.  Where was his reward in serving God?  he wondered.  Was this the thanks he got for standing up to the prophets of Baal?  For making a mockery of their so-called god?  He could still remember the absolute incredulity that came over their faces when God's fire fell and consumed the sacrifice he had prepared for Him.  The fire had consumed everything --the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, the soil, even the water in the trench that had been dug around it.  that was all the people needed to see to fall on their faces and worship God.  Incensed against the prophets of Baal, the crowd rose and slaughtered them all.  And then Elijah had prophesied an end to the drought in the land.  As the rain fell, Elijah, overtaken by the power of the Lord, ran ahead of Ahab's chariot all the way to Jezreel.

You would think that with all these supernatural manifestations of God's Spirit at work, Elijah would get a little respect.  But no, that evil queen Jezebel had the nerve instead to threaten his life!  Her spirit of oppression spread throughout the land, gripping everyone with fear, including her husband, who yielded to whatever she wanted for fear of being confronted by her wrath. And now Jezebel was infuriated at the death of her lackeys, those false prophets of Baal she surrounded herself with.  And her undesirable attention was now vindictively directed toward Elijah.  Needless to say, this seriously dampened his exhilaration of calling down fire and rain from heaven.  His victory felt short-lived as he ran for his life.  He felt so isolated, so spent, so depressed.  How God could leave him at the mercy of this wicked woman was beyond him.  Why hadn't God struck her down while He was on a roll?  After all, Elijah had confronted God's enemies and wiped them out with a vengeance.  Didn't one good favor deserve another?

And yet here Elijah was, fleeing for his life.  Perhaps he was getting old.  Maybe he couldn't take all this excitement anymore.  With resignation closing in around him like heavy velvet curtains, he concluded he might as well die --he had definitely had enough.  He was too tired to be startled by even the angel of the Lord who appeared to him, instructing him to eat.  Almost in a dreamlike state, Elijah did as he was told, eating enough to strengthen himself to make the journey to Horeb, the mountain of God, driven by nothing more than the desire to get some sort of answer.

And then He was there...God, asking Elijah why he was there.  How could God ask such a question?  Didn't He know how hard Elijah had been working for Him?  Didn't He know how badly the rest of the people were behaving?  How they had persecuted and killed everyone who made a stand for God?  Why, Elijah was the only one left.  The only one who hadn't compromised his standards.  The last one...and now they were trying to kill him!

He didn't know what to expect as the Lord invited him to stand in His presence on the mountain.  At this point, facing the great and powerful wind that tore the mountain apart as well as the earthquake and fire that followed was better than facing Jezebel.  But then came the gentle whisper of God, humbling him and asking once again, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"  But Elijah missed the real question.  "How could you ever feel alone after I've revealed My presence to you in such undeniable ways?  Will you always need a major display to be convinced that you're not alone?  Don't you know I'm bigger than the box you've put Me in?  Don't you know that I am nearer to you in the stillness than I am in all outward manifestations?  No, My son, you are not alone.  You have reinforcement beyond what your eyes see and your senses conceive.  You should have learned that lesson when you were waiting for Me to send the rain."

As Elijah descended from the mountain, reenergized, refocused, reassured, he felt renewed purpose.  He had to work to do.  It was amazing the difference a conversation with God could make.  How kind He was, always faithful to meet those who called out to Him at their point of need.  Not only did He offer food for the body, He gave fortification to the soul.

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How many times have you become weary of well doing when you see no immediate rewards in sight?  We struggle even more when we suffer for righteousness' sake-- especially when God doesn't seem to come against our enemies the way we feel He should.  We can stand in bold, unwavering faith one moment and plummet to the depths of despair and doubt in a matter of seconds once the enemy of our souls rises up to retaliate against us.  And we begin to take the spiritual warfare that ensues personally instead of remembering that we never stand alone.  It is the One who is within us that the enemy hates.  Therefore, an attack against us is an attack against God, and He takes it personally.   For this reason we have His promise that He is able tot keep that which is committed to Him, for God defends His own.  In that promise we can rest secure that no weapon the enemy fashions against us will ever prosper.

His Love Always Finds Me by Michelle Hammond McKinney

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