Elijah was afraid. I don't know why, but that gives me comfort. I can relate to doing something I think is brave, only to fall flat on my face a few minutes later. Why was Eliijah so confident when it came to dealing with King Ahab and the followers of Baal, but when it came to Jezebel, he was afraid? In chapter 18 when Elijah is about to go and confront Ahab, this is what it says Jezebel is up to.
4 While Jezebel was killing off the LORD’s prophets,
When we get to chapter 19, we see that Elijah has a reaction that kind of reminds me of our friend Jonah.
3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.
The biggest lesson I take from this is that sometimes we think we are done. We are ready to give up and quit. We have to remember that if God isn't done with us, it's not over! Maybe we think that we have a gameplan to make sure that it's over and that we are done, but God will make sure that we are taken care of. Look at what happens next in chapter 19.
All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
7 The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.
God sure is good at finding people! He found Jonah hiding on a ship and now he finds Elijah. Jonah needed to spend a few days in a big fish before he figured out what to do next, with Elijah he needed bread and water to be ready for his next step. What I love next is the honesty Elijah has with God. Have you ever been bothered by something and then decided it would be better to beat around the bush when talking with God? I think we do it most when we are either mad at God or we don't fully trust God with something. Elijah was scared, instead of going to God and thanking him for everything, he decides that dying would be the route to go. Finally, after getting some much-needed rest and something to eat, Elijah gets honest.
And the word of the LORD came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
It sounds like Elijah felt like he failed. The Israelites didn't listen to him, he couldn't help save the other prophets, Now he's ready for the conclusion, Elijah thought the conclusion was death.
11 The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
The greatest way I have ever heard this explained was by Pastor Craig Groeschel, it's been years, so I don't want to say this is his direct quote, but he said something about how we think God will talk to us in some grand way, he will talk to us in an earthquake or a fire, but instead he whispers to us. He does that so we will know that he is close. How brilliant is that? All of the issues we have, how often do we feel alone or feel that God isn't paying attention or that he has other things more important that what we are going through? These are the times that we have to know that he is close and stop talking long enough to hear the whisper.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
15 The LORD said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”
I know that there is so much more to the story of Elijah, but, it's always good to save some of the story for another time, so for now can we just focus on the everything that happened in a few chapters?
Every time Elijah prayed, something big happened! Even after we see something big happen, we can still get scared! We may think that we are done, but before we decide that we are done, we need to make sure God is done with us! Sometimes we talk too much. When we get scared or we think that we are alone, Be honest with God about how you are feeling, then shut-up and wait for the whisper!!
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