HOW NOT TO FALL INTO DESPAIR (1 Kings 19)

Elijah had just come from a confrontation with the prophets of Baal where he ended up killing all of them. (Chapter 18)

News of this reached queen Jezebel and she sent a messenger to tell Elijah that she would also have him killed. Fearing for his life Elijah decides to go into hiding.  (v. 1-3)

What strikes me as strange here is that in spite of the fact that God had just done several miracles through Elijah, he was still afraid of what Jezebel wanted to do to him. Its almost as if Elijah suddenly had short-term memory loss of God´s faithfulness and power in his life.

What about us? Can we still remember how God has worked miracles and wonders in our own lives? Or has our own memory failed us? Has the wonder faded?

God is all-powerful and unchanging. He has delivered us in the past and can, still and will deliver us  from whatever we are going through now and what we will go through in the future. KEEP REMEMBERING GOD AND HOW HE HAS DELIVERED US IN THE PAST SO WE DON´T FALL INTO DESPAIR. (1 Samuel 17:37)

WHAT´S THE BEST AND EASIEST WAY TO REMEMBER? DECLARE WHAT GOD HAS DONE. KEEP TELLING ABOUT HOW HE HAS BEEN FAITHFUL TO YOU TO OTHER PEOPLE.

Another clear cause of desperation was because Elijah´s focus has shifted. From a prophet focused on God (as shown in his own prayer in Chapter 17:14, 21 and Chapter 18:36-37) to someone focused on himself (Chapter 19:4).

While it is true that Elijah´s situation was really something to be really concerned and anxious about. Elijah was not equipped to face that situation on his own strength. In the same way that he was not equipped to cause the miracles that just happened in Chapters 17-18. In contrast, let´s look at David in 1 Samuel 17: 26, 36, 45-46.

 Anytime we try to do things on our own, trusting on our own strengths and capabilities, eventually we will fail. INSTEAD OF FOCUSING ON OUR OWN STRENGTH LET´S FOCUS ON THE SOURCE OF OUR STRENGTH SO THAT WE NEVER GET INTIMIDATED, FEARFUL OR ANXIOUS OF THE SITUATIONS THAT COME OUR WAY.

While in hiding, Elijah falls into despair. At this time, God sends an angel to take care of him.  Twice the angels came to feed him with cake and water. (v. 4-7) *

After the encounter with the angels, Elijah journeys on to Mount Horeb where he comes face-to-face with God. In the first encounter God asks Elijah “What are you doing here Elijah?” To this Elijah answers with his list of complaints. (v. 8-10)

After this first encounter, God instructs Elijah to stand on the mountain and wait for Him. While waiting for God Elijah encounters strong wind, but God was not´s  there. Then an earthquake came and still God was not there. After the earthquake, a fire but still God was not there. (v. 11-12) **

Finally, God comes to Elijah in the form of a gentle blowing and again asks Elijah for the second time “What are you doing here, Elijah?”. To which Elijah again replies with his same list of complaints. (v. 13-14)

It amazes me how similar Elijah´s and my own cries to God are. In these passages it seems as if Elijah comes to God complaining that in spite of his zealousness for Him, still he feels alone and persecuted. (v. 10,14). I shudder when I think of the many times I´ve come to God asking / complaining.

Ironically, as early as verse 6 we see that Elijah was never alone. God sent His angels to feed him. In verse 9, 11 and 13 God speaks to him. Yet he still feels alone and abandoned.

As I look at how God was showing Elijah that He was with him it occurred to me that God was reminding him of His faithfulness and power.  Notice that God sent his angels to feed him much in the same way that in Chapter 17 God provided for his needs through the ravens, the brook and the widow.

God also reminds Elijah of how powerful he is by using nature itself to demonstrate His power. Notice how as the Lord was passing by, there was a great wind, then an earthquake and then a fire. Much in the same way God demonstrated his power to Elijah using nature in Chapter 18:38, 44-45.

In the midst of the difficult circumstances of life that we face God also sends us the same hints / reminders of his faithfulness and power. We can find these by reading His word, the Bible, and by fellowshipping with other Christians and seeing how God is currently working his wonders in their life. 

However, the moment we go incognito, start hiding, start looking at our own strengths; the moment we stop remembering how faithful God has been to us, stop spending time with Him by reading his word, stop fellowshipping with other Christians, that´s when we slip and fall into desperation.

In Memoriam

What Am I Choosing To Remember Today?

Memory, learning and action are inseparable. What I chose to remember (or forget) become lessons learned and these lessons ultimately define my future actions. Nothing wrong with remembering or building memorials (whether physical ones or just in our minds ) in fact it goes way back to the old testament.

"Joshua 4:7 "...tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”

However, there is a need to be careful and selective on the memories I retain and the memorials I build. One of the devil's greatest deceptions is to cause me to continue to dwell on things, events, memories, people that have hurt, discouraged and or disappointed me. In so doing, rendering me (at the very least) depressed, paralyzed (unable to live out my faith), ineffective as witness /servant /follower of Christ and (at the very worst)/even hurtful to those around me and damaging to His great commission that He has laid out in Matthew 28:19

The question I ask myself is this “Do the memories I keep in my mind cause me to respond/act in a manner that is not consistent with the will of my Father in heaven? Do the memories I hold on to cause me to become angry, bitter, frustrated, resentful, disappointed, desperate? Are they robbing me of the joy of His salvation?” If so, then maybe its time to make new memories, maybe its time to tear down "old" memorials (whether physical ones or just in my mind) /memorial stones that I've put up that have become enemy footholds / strongholds in my mind and maybe its time to build new ones.

"2 Corinthians 10:5 "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

"Philippians 4:8 "8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

New memorials that would remind me of God's FAITHFULNESS, His POWER, His FORGIVENESS, His LOVE and GRACE instead of remembering the evil that men can do and have done to me. Perhaps its about time I started to really FORGIVE just as I myself have been FORGIVEN.

One thing I should remember and never forget is that I too was once in darkness, and I too was evil, I too was detestable and loathsome in the eyes of a holy God, I too was as much (if not more of) a sinner as those who have and are still doing me wrong—YET BY HIS GRACE I AM FORGIVEN!

Here are some thoughts I will dwell on and need to remember: Matthew 6:14-15; Matthew 18:21-35; Mark 11:25; Luke 17:4; Colossians 3:13;