I am encouraged and re-assured with His word through this devotional.
I hope you will be too.
COME OUT
by Charles R. Swindoll
Read 1 Kings 19:10--18
God met his servant Elijah in his desperate moment of
discouragement and despair. This is mercy at its best, beautifully
portrayed by the Master Himself.
First, God allowed Elijah a time of rest and refreshment. No
sermon. No rebuke. No blame. No shame. No lightning bolt from
heaven, saying, "Look at you! Get up, you worthless ingrate! Get on
your feet! Quickly, back on the job!"
Instead, God said, "Take it easy, my son. Relax. You haven't had a
good meal in a long time." Then He catered a meal of freshly baked
bread and cool, refreshing water. That must have brought back sweet
memories of those simple days by the brook at Cherith. How gracious
of God!
Fatigue can lead to all sorts of strange imaginations. It'll make
you believe a lie. Elijah was believing a lie, partly because he
was exhausted. So God gave him rest and refreshment, and afterward
Elijah went on for forty days and nights in the strength of it.
Second, God communicated wisely with Elijah. God said, "Elijah! Get
up and walk out of this cave. Man, it's dark in here. Go out there
and stand in the light. Stand on the mountain before Me. That's the
place to be encouraged. Forget Jezebel. I want you to get your eyes
on Me. Come on, I'm here for you. I always will be."
God's presence was not in wind or earthquake or fire. His voice
came in the gentle breeze. Those sweet zephyrs were like windswept,
invisible magnets, drawing Elijah out of the cave. Do you see what
God did? He drew Elijah out of the cave of self-pity and
depression. And once Elijah was out of that cave, God asked him
again, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
God showed Elijah that he still had a job to do---that there was
still a place for him. Disillusioned and exhausted though he was,
he was still God's man and God's choice for "such a time as this"
(Esther 4:14). And as far as this I'm-all-alone stuff went,
"Elijah, let Me set the record straight," said God. "There are
seven thousand faithful out there who have not bowed to Baal.
You're really not alone. At any given moment, with the snap of My
divine fingers, I can bring to the forefront a whole fresh
battalion of My troops." What reassurance that brought.
I hope you will be too.
COME OUT
by Charles R. Swindoll
Read 1 Kings 19:10--18
God met his servant Elijah in his desperate moment of
discouragement and despair. This is mercy at its best, beautifully
portrayed by the Master Himself.
First, God allowed Elijah a time of rest and refreshment. No
sermon. No rebuke. No blame. No shame. No lightning bolt from
heaven, saying, "Look at you! Get up, you worthless ingrate! Get on
your feet! Quickly, back on the job!"
Instead, God said, "Take it easy, my son. Relax. You haven't had a
good meal in a long time." Then He catered a meal of freshly baked
bread and cool, refreshing water. That must have brought back sweet
memories of those simple days by the brook at Cherith. How gracious
of God!
Fatigue can lead to all sorts of strange imaginations. It'll make
you believe a lie. Elijah was believing a lie, partly because he
was exhausted. So God gave him rest and refreshment, and afterward
Elijah went on for forty days and nights in the strength of it.
Second, God communicated wisely with Elijah. God said, "Elijah! Get
up and walk out of this cave. Man, it's dark in here. Go out there
and stand in the light. Stand on the mountain before Me. That's the
place to be encouraged. Forget Jezebel. I want you to get your eyes
on Me. Come on, I'm here for you. I always will be."
God's presence was not in wind or earthquake or fire. His voice
came in the gentle breeze. Those sweet zephyrs were like windswept,
invisible magnets, drawing Elijah out of the cave. Do you see what
God did? He drew Elijah out of the cave of self-pity and
depression. And once Elijah was out of that cave, God asked him
again, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
God showed Elijah that he still had a job to do---that there was
still a place for him. Disillusioned and exhausted though he was,
he was still God's man and God's choice for "such a time as this"
(Esther 4:14). And as far as this I'm-all-alone stuff went,
"Elijah, let Me set the record straight," said God. "There are
seven thousand faithful out there who have not bowed to Baal.
You're really not alone. At any given moment, with the snap of My
divine fingers, I can bring to the forefront a whole fresh
battalion of My troops." What reassurance that brought.
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