Elijah felt overwhelmed, sad, and all alone.
I've felt depressed and overwhelmed many times.
The only difference between Elijah and me
—besides the obvious that he was a man and I am not—
is that nobody wants me dead.
Have you heard the story of Elijah?
He was a prophet, a messenger of God, who lived almost 3,000 years ago.
Not an ideal time to be a prophet, because hardly anybody seemed interested in God. But after years of hiding, God told Elijah it was time...
I can only imagine this was the moment he'd been waiting for.
God said, Go.
And what a day that was.
It happened on Mount Carmel. Elijah gathered the prophets of Baal, a god many people worshipped at that time, and challenged them.
Hundreds of prophets of Baal vs. one Elijah,
God vs. Baal.
Baal's prophets prayed, shouted, danced, and begged all day long.
Nothing happened.
Then it was Elijah's turn.
He prepared his altar, poured water all over it, and prayed to his God.
Quite simple: God show them who You are…
And fire came from heaven.
Spectacular and powerful.
Oh, to be in Elijah's shoes at that moment!
Did he feel invincible? Excited for what was next?
Close to God?
I would.
And he did. He ran victorious for miles and miles, ahead of the king's chariot.
But then the queen heard the news and wanted him dead.
And Elijah ran some more.
Miles and miles, this time for dear life.
Until he collapsed in the wilderness, exhausted and afraid.
And in that state, he told God he'd had enough. He wanted to die. The victory on the mountaintop was miles away.
I love this story so much because this great prophet is so human. So much like us.
And the way God responds is so tender and kind.
He doesn't correct Elijah right away. He doesn't tell him to have more faith or count his blessings.
At times when I felt low, those were the things I told myself. I always thought I had to fix myself. Count my blessings, be stronger, try harder, be more spiritual, be better.
It was difficult for me to just feel.
Elijah feels.
Deeply defeated and low. And God lets him feel. And sleep.
Then God (through an angel) says:
"Arise and eat."
And there was water and bread.
(I know! Freshly baked bread. In the wilderness.)
Elijah eats, sleeps, and God lets him. After a while, He wakes him up once more:
"Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you."
The journey is too great for you, God said.
That touches me so much.
How He sees.
God sees.
Rest.
Bread.
Sit with God. He sees.
The journey is too great for you.
These words touch me because God doesn't say, Elijah, the journey shouldn't be too great for you. You are My prophet, you should be able to handle this.
Those are things I would say.
But not God. He meets Elijah exactly where Elijah is.
A tired body. An overwhelmed mind.
Even after the glorious moment with fire. Spectacular and powerful.
But still, shortly afterward, he was lying under a tree wanting to die.
You'd think, for Elijah, that would be enough for a lifetime of trusting God.
Would that ever be enough for you?
For me?
When Elijah looks at his circumstances, he gets overwhelmed.
When he gets overwhelmed, his perspective changes.
He believes he's all alone and tells God: I alone am left.
It could be something I'd say. Poor me.
And Elijah adds: "I have been very zealous for the Lord God."
And that is so me, too!
I could say: "But God, I have tried so very hard. For You."
And God lets Elijah vent. Let it all out. Eventually, God will tell him there are still thousands in Israel who haven't bowed down to Baal.
But not yet. First:
Sleep.
Bread.
More sleep.
More food.
And then God brings Elijah to Mount Horeb, the same mountain where Moses met God.
A journey of forty days and forty nights. When Elijah reaches the mountain of God, he spends the night in a cave.
And God asks him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
And Elijah pours it all out. His disappointment. His pain. How alone he feels.
And God listens.
Then God tells Elijah to come out of the cave and stand on the mountain. Because the Lord is about to pass by.
Oh, to be in Elijah's shoes again. Can you imagine?
God is about to pass by.
And a great wind tears through the mountains and shatters rocks.
But God is not in the wind.
Then an earthquake.
But God is not in the earthquake.
Then fire. And you and I know that Elijah knows fire!
Spectacular and powerful.
Does Elijah remember?
And God is not in the fire, either.
After the fire comes the sound of a low whisper.
And Elijah wraps his face in his cloak and goes out to the entrance of the cave.
He knows.
This is God.
Powerful, in all His tenderness.
To a huge, wavering crowd, God revealed His power.
Fire from heaven.
In the wilderness, He revealed His care to a weary man.
Bread, water, rest.
And here, at Mount Horeb, God reveals Himself.
A tender whisper for a broken man.
Elijah, you and me. Different lives, different moments, different needs.
Yet the same God who meets us where we are.
The God who sees.
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