Arise And Eat
1Kings 19:4-5 4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.” 5 He lay down and slept under a juniper tree; and behold, there was an angel touching him, and he said to him, “Arise, eat.”
All of us have found ourselves in a spiritual valley when we expected to be on a mountaintop. When we at least anticipated it, physical fatigue set in, or we received discouraging news, or an old sin returned to plague us. Troubling circumstances in our lives often converge and cause a change from faith to fear.
The prophet Elijah found himself hiding in the wilderness largely because his focus had changed; he started to look at God through his circumstances rather than looking at his circumstances through God. He had magnified his life’s difficulties and brought himself down. As he began to walk by sight instead of faith, his peace was disrupted and his spiritual prosperity was eroded.
Elijah had fallen into the “self” trap. Focusing on the many failures of the Israelites towards God; he had fallen pray to the notion that he was the only one serving God (1Kings 19:10). His faith and hope were replaced by discontent and a lack of peace. In self-pity, he ran away to the desert, lying down on the job under a broom tree, praying to die. Yet instead of judging him or chastising him, God came to Elijah and refreshed him with food and drink, preparing him for the journey ahead. With a gentle whisper, the Lord then revealed and refreshed him and reinstated him, giving him a whole new list of duties to perform (v4-16).
During trying times, we often allow self-pity to settle in. We begin to think we are the only one who is facing such trials. Some of us may relate to Elijah’s experience. The Lord used us greatly, and we had influence for the gospel in the past, but for whatever reason, we are now a long way from that mountaintop. God may let us get so low, but he never leaves us there. As the angel was with Elijah when he was in his valley, so God’s Spirit is with us in ours.
If you find yourself in the desert, don’t just find a broom tree to lie down under. Don’t assume your best days lie behind you. God has a purpose for you and me. He completes what he begins (Philippians 1:6). Be refreshed by the reminder of God’s presence and press on in the work He has called you to do.