God My Sustenance

Tired, Hungry, and Thirsty

There are a people of God who today are exhausted from the path our salvation has led us into. For many of God’s people who have walked with Him year over year the religious platitudes come and go some stick others just evoke anxiety;

Let go and let God…

I can do all thing in Christ who strengthens me…

God will never give you more than you can handle…

It seems like we have been living in the last days for the last 30 or so years. We are no longer excited to share the word of God much less the work in the Kingdom.

We have seen ministries rise and ministries fall, we are the generation that has seen revivals, miracles, deliverance. We have received prophetic words and today are awaiting the latter rain as a second outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

However in our condition today we appear as the battle hardened warrior, we are exhausted from the fight, our muscles are tired, the wounds from the battlefield appear unbearable, our minds grow weary from having to respond to the various assaults of the enemy, (yes we have had glimpses of the word of God, His power, and glory) but today it seems like it was so long ago that we saw the manifest glory of God.

In our exhaustion we can’t remember the last time we truly sat and rested with our Lord, we have had to live in the spaces of just enough for the season.

Today, we are exhausted and in desperate need of rest, we are hungry and are tired of the over-processed visceral garbage being spewed out by the masses, we are thirsty and languishing in spaces where the Holy Spirit should move freely but has been reduced to an emotion.

For many of us we are in desperate need to encounter God in greater ways are so worn from the fight we are in need of encountering God My Sustenance.

In our Christian walk we must come to know and lean on the God who sustains us and brings us into rest.

Psalm 54:1–7 ESV

O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might. O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth. For strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life; they do not set God before themselves. Selah Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life. He will return the evil to my enemies; in your faithfulness put an end to them. With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good. For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.

Glance at David as we advance to the what it takes to know God my Sustenance.

Tired of the fighting; tired of running

Turns to ask God to answer his prayer

Does not deny the desperation he is in but is waiting on the Lord (ruthless men)

Embraces what he has learned about who God is and stays in that space in the waiting. (God is my Helper)

Raises a free will offering in the midst of the despair…

give what the Lord is prompting you to give… time effort devotion finance

In the middle of the fighting in the middle exhaustion, in the middle of the hunger, in the middle of the thirst David makes it a point to raise an offering before the Lord. As we get to know God my Sustenance we may feel alone, desperate, and in need but our God brings us to rest, feeds us by His word and quenches our thirst when we choose to seek Him.

Empowered for the Fight

Elijah the Tishbite from Tishbe or;

From the Tsaba’ (warrior from the Host of Whole Creation armies)

Arrives in the timeline of Ahab who is seen as a ruler who did evil in the sight of the Lord

The Israelites are in apostacy

Boldly declares a drought and passes judgment on the land (1 Kings 17:1)

Elijah performs a total of about 12 miraculous signs and wonders that are accounted for.

1 Kings 17:1 ESV

Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

Th confidence with which he speaks tells of his readiness to engage in the warfare at hand

Special note made with regards to “except by my word”

Departs because of the Lord

Power of New Life

Causes the widow of Zarphath to bring him food and water then causes there to be more than plenty of oil and flour in the house.

As he sojourned there the boy dies and his anointing is blamed

there are things that happen in our life simply for the Lord to glorify Himself

1 Kings 17:20–24 ESV

And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?” Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

What kind of man is this that the Lord listens to in this way

Brings new life into the boy

Causes the house to believe ( He is anointed appointed, and moves in His power)

Fierce Devotion to the Lord

450 Prophets of Baal gathered and challenged to exhibit who is the real God

1 Kings 18:21 ESV

And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.

A hunger and jealousy for the things of the Lord

Found himself alone…(in the highest of spaces we find ourselves here)

Elijah Mocks the prophets of Baal because their god doesnt answer

Remember God listens to him… he consumes the offering.

slaughters 450 prophets

causes it to rain once more

Out runs Ahab’s horses

The power on him must have been great but here he is sitting in victory when the enemy whispers in his direction

“…by this time tomorrow I will take your life”

Exhaustion Sets In

1 Kings 19:3–4 ESV

Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.”

Elijah is suicidal at this point… what happened to the warrior from the Host of Creations Army

He is tired… he is hungry for the Lord…he is thirsty and all he can think of is dying

Brought to Rest

1 Kings 19:5-8 Elijah is fed by the Lord not once… twice…

He is made ready for 40 day journey ( He is about to have an encounter)

Found in the Rest

Elijah was about to encounter the God of his sustenance

1 Kings 19:9 ESV

There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

What are you doing here? Gentle rebuke

I am the only one left (still in desperation)

Looked for him

Strong Wind — not in the wind

Earth quake — not in the earth quake

Fire — not in the fire

Elijah was still searching in the big, in the busyness

1 Kings 19:12–13 ESV

And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

It is in the still small voice he encounters the God who has been his sustenance.

He had to stop running, he had to find a place of rest before he could finally have encounter with God.

Make note of how David has a similar moment of wanting to die but when he finally rest only then does he have the encounter with the God who is the sustenance