Written by Chuck Swindoll, these encouraging devotional thoughts are published seven days per week.
God has not designed us to live like hermits in a cave. He has designed us to live in friendship, fellowship, and community with others. That's why the Church, the Body of Christ, is so very important, for it is there that we are drawn together in love and mutual encouragement.
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).
Why did Elijah fear Jezebel's intimidating threats? Why did he run away from his long-standing priority of serving God and hide in fear under the shadow of that solitary tree, deep in the wilderness?
So, this Christmas season I pray that the warmth of the Saviour’s love will spread itself over you as never before.
In the first verse in 1 Kings 18, there is an eloquent phrase: "The word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year." Three years! That's an incredibly long time to go without rain. We can't imagine it, can we? But God was up to something.
All over this world, around us every day, are people who are looking for the truth to be lived out in the lives of those who claim it. Just as the widow watched Elijah, there are people watching you. They hear what you say you believe, but they are watching to see what you do.
If you wish to be a man or woman of God, it is essential that you face the impossible situations of life with faith, as Elijah did. If you are a young person who desires to live a godly life that will leave its mark upon this world, you must learn early to stand in the shadow of your Saviour, trusting Him to work through the trials you encounter, through the extreme circumstances you cannot handle.
Read 1 Kings 17:22–23
No words can describe what happened in that little upstairs bedroom when the corpse began to stir and Elijah saw life returning to the boy’s body. No words can describe being in the midst of such a trial and then watching God, in a miraculous moment or period of time, work it out. Only you who have been there can nod, smile, and say, “Amen. I know exactly what you’re describing; I’ve seen God do it.”
Elijah saw that kind of miracle. It happened before his eyes. Now, look at what he did.
Elijah was not able to say, "Let this child's life return to him, as it happened to Enoch, as it happened to Isaac, as it happened to Moses," because there was no precedence for this particular miracle. So Elijah said, "Lord, I'm trusting You for a miracle. I'm asking You to perform the impossible." He then waited.
Elijah had no this-is-how-God-always-does-it manual to follow. Instead, he relied solely on one thing: faith. He had only his faith in the living God.
Sign up to receive Chuck Swindoll’s Daily Devotional in your inbox seven days per week.
Insight for Living is committed to excellence in communicating the truths of Scripture and the Person of Jesus Christ in an accurate, clear, and practical manner so that people will come to an understanding of God’s plan for their lives, as well as their significant role as authentic Christians in a needy, hostile, and desperate world.
1-30445 Progressive Way • Abbotsford, BC • V2T 6W3
info@insightforliving.ca
1.800.663.7639