Elijah
1 Kings 17: 6-13 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening; and he drank from the brook. (7)And it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. (8) Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, (9) “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” (10) So he arose and went to Zarepheth, and when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.” (11) And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” (12) So she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little il in a jar; and see I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” (13) and Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son.”
I remember reading in the Bible of Elijah being sent to an area, he preached and tried to reach the people, but was driven away. God sent a crow to bring him food each day, and he was staying by a brook. I imagine he spent a lot of time in speculation, prayer, and searching his heart and God’s will. But it was also a time of fully trusting God….with patience. I’m not sure he did trust God completely at that time. My guess is Elijah was fairly discouraged, mentally defeated, and needed to be revived. We get revived resting in God’s presence.
But as he was there, feeling a bit sorry for himself, the brook dried up, the crow no longer came with food, and God directed him to a widow’s home. He told her to fix him some bread, and she offered him the last of the flour she had, although she had a young son to feed. This was the end of her supplies. How hopeless it must have felt. Yet, the woman did as Elijah asked. She fixed him a bit of bread from her handful of flour and the bit of oil. Although Elijah had reassured her, my bet would be she doubted and resigned that she and her son had had their last bit of food yesterday. Now, she would make her last supplies for Elijah, or perhaps she did believe it would work out. But, nonetheless, she did as Elijah asked, and shared the last of her food. Then the God supplied her with flour and oil for all their needs. How awesome!
If I don’t see clearly the path, I doubt it, become impatient, nervous, unsure, start begging (and whining) and sometimes make grievous errors. The more I read this story of Elijah, the more I pray to have more faith when called to wait…and more importantly to commune in the quiet, stilling the lies the enemy may whisper to cause me to doubt and be fearful. I want to remain quiet and rested in His peace, being thankful a bird brings me meals and the water flows.
Patience has ALWAYS been such an issue for me. Never did I want to wait for anything. I am truly a child that could be under the umbrella of immediate gratification. But, of course, not all my desires were immediately gratified, and thank God. Working and striving toward goals builds a more solid God-like character, and I certainly want that.
I’ve worked for and waited for things throughout my life, as we all have. Over time, which truly means as I have aged and become a more mature Christian, I’ve learned to recognize the benefit of getting or achieving things in God’s time. Now, after years of learning the lesson of the benefit of waiting, and building trust, I wait more patiently, usually, seeking His will and timing in my life. It still may not always be comfortable to wait, but it is easier. The Holy Spirit is awesome about reminding me and immediately, my impatient spirit quiets.
By studying God’s word, I’ve learned more about patience, being happy in whatever situation I am in and continuing to wait and work for what I believe God is leading me to. Not always easy, but truly easier than years ago. I believe that is a result of aging as well as learning and feeling the reward of following God.
It’s a process. I am thankful that I have the Word which teaches, as well as bible studies to learn and get a greater, deeper knowledge, to have preachers who are biblical followers and good teachers, and to have a Christian ‘family’ to share and discuss things with. We are not alone in our walk. I believe Elijah was feeling alone when God delivered him initially to the brook with ravens bringing food, and the water flowed by. I think he was feeling defeated, and as if he was the only prophet remaining and everyone else was trying to kill him. He believed he was the only prophet left of God, or at least the only one who would call people to God.
But Elijah was not alone. God had another of His soldiers who had followed Him since he was a young teen, Obadiah, and he had hidden 100 prophets in two separate caves to protect them, hiding them from Jezebel. We are never alone if we know God, and have a relationship with Him.
And Satan loves to lie and deceive and tell you you are alone, separated. Yes, we may feel alone at times, but again, those are lies of Satan’s. During those times, we need to be more diligent about seeking His word for us. so although we may feel we are alone. we never are if we know God. Sometimes, I think God orchestrates periods we can be alone to rest, to revive, to reflect on our blessings, and to learn more about trust.
Elijah reaches out to a widow with a young child, and they were all blessed. Both Elijah and the woman followed ‘commands’; Elijah was told to go to the widow, and he told the woman to fix him something to eat, before preparing a meal for herself and son. God was there. They were not alone. He blessed them.
Count your blessings. Rest in Him when you need to and recognize you are not alone. Thank You for letting me know I am not alone and for letting me share ‘mybellaviews’ with others.
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