Gift of God Devotional

Do you ever feel as if you need a nap and a snack? One of my favorite stories in the Bible is the story of Elijah as he is fleeing into the wilderness, where God tells him to rest and eat something.

Read 1 Kings 19:1-18

Elijah experienced this low point in his life right after he had experienced two great spiritual victories: the defeat of the prophets of Baal by calling down fire from the heavens, and the answered prayer for rain in the midst of a long drought (see 1 Kings 18). 

Often, discouragement sets in after great spiritual experiences and wins. You may win one fight to lose the next. You may experience a tremendous sermon or moment, to then have a flat tire or some other thing go wrong. 

Last summer, I had just overcome a season of extreme depression. I was about to get a promotion at work. I was in a good place mentally, physically, and spiritually. I was excited for the future, something I had not understood. And everything changed in an instant. . . In the midst of a casual walk outside to move cars in the driveway, I was randomly attacked and assaulted, right in front of my house. A concussion, time off work, and a few weeks to reset – I thought the worst was over. More than a year later, there are still court dates set related to this incident – from someone who lives four houses away!

If I’m being honest, I feel like I am taking one step forward and two steps back. Over the past two years, I have undergone a complete career change, multiple health issues and limitations, loved ones leaving or lost, and a complete overturn of how I view the world. I have felt defeated, forsaken, and forgotten. Have you ever felt this way? I know Elijah sure did. Just when he thought everything was going up, everything flipped.

Elijah hit his lowest point alone in the wilderness. He was literally running for his life, and he had had enough: “I have had enough, Lord. Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Have you ever felt like you just can’t take anymore? Have you ever felt like you do everything right, but everything goes wrong? You are not alone! Interestingly enough, my Bible parallels both Moses’ and Jonah’s stories to this verse. Moses and Elijah are regarded as some of God‘s most faithful believers (see Hebrews 11), yet they sought death to end their struggles!

At this moment in the story, we see God step in. God encourages Elijah to rest and to eat. Elijah needed to reset before he could take the next step forward. Even when you might feel exhausted, burnt out, and ready to give up, remind yourself that it’s okay to step away from the situation and reset. That does not mean that you completely shut down – something I myself struggle with – but instead that you reset and refocus, ready to keep going. Elijah’s next step in his journey was to walk for forty days and forty nights on an over 200-mile journey before he once again rested and reset, and then we see God step in. Do you feel as if you are walking and getting nowhere, seeking God and doing all the “right” things and still struggling? Maybe, in this moment, you need to pause and take a break. Pray in this moment this: “God, I am seeking You in this moment, but You were here all along. Let me hear Your voice in the peace of this moment.” You may be walking 200 miles to get nowhere, or you may find God in that journey – but don’t forget: He is already with you!

Elijah found God in the quiet. When Elijah stops looking for God in the big and profound, he found God was already there with him. God was already there, waiting on Elijah to be still and to listen. Are you too focused on all of the major events in your life to notice God there beside you in the quiet? Are you looking for God in the revivals, sermons, and conferences, but not in your daily walk, prayer, study, and fellowship with others?

Looking back at the story, Elijah thought that he was the only one left who was zealous for God. Do you ever feel like you are alone? God reminds us repeatedly in Scripture that we are not meant to do life alone and that we have help – something we will talk more about next time as we discuss Moses. God gives us people in our lives to make sure we are not alone. As I have struggled through many things over the past two years, I have never felt alone. As I wrestle with my faith, even now, I know that God is with me. I know that I myself have repeatedly pushed people away in my life, but God has never left me alone. I am grateful for the people he has placed in my life to help support me. And I am all the more grateful for the two men that He has placed in my life who struggle the same as me, that we might be an encouragement to each other and a reminder to each other that we are not alone in our fights.

Who has God placed in your life to help you? Who are you trying to push away? 

I started this blog because in this season of my life, I feel as if I am wrestling in the mud. I have sought out that request for God to end my life before, and I know that God works in us and is able to do “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” (Eph. 3:20). God has led Elijah and many others to do great and wonderful things, despite all of the hardships that they faced – and some did great things BECAUSE of their hardships (think of Daniel, Paul, and others in the Bible who used their hardships to point others to God.)

Where is God leading you today? What are the fears and worries that you need to leave with God today? How are you going to rest today?