HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS

THE VOICE THAT QUIETS YOUR FEARS

1 Kings 19:10-15

Introduction:

The Holiday season is upon us. We have thanksgiving here soon, then there will be Christmas and the New Year. This is a joyous time for many. But for some it’s not. For some it’s an empty chair, it’s one less person at the dinner table. For some it’s not a holiday season. It’s grieving season.

For all of us. It’s a time of uncertainty. With Covid, will we even be able to get together with families. Will we be able to afford what we’ve done in years past. We have doubts and questions about it all. We have anxiety and fears that linger in our hearts and minds. It’s easy to isolate ourselves and enter in to a sort of spiritual depression where we feel hopeless, alone, and scared.

The good news is that God will meet with us in our despair, in our discouragement, in our spiritual depression...

The Bible speaks about this. It actually gives us a great example of what it looks like to go through a spiritual depression from 1 Kings 19:10-18

Let’s read....

1 Kings 19:10–15 (NASB95)

10 He said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” 11 So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 Then he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”

Here we have the prophet Elijah...

whose prayers were able to halt or bring the rain.

who created a never ending jar of flour and a flask of oil

who prayed for the raising of the widows son to raise from the dead.

In James 5:17 it tells us that Elijah was human just like we are yet he prayed the glory down.

Like us also though, Elijah had times of weakness.

Jezebel sent word to Elijah that he had twenty-four hours to leave Jezreel or be killed. Elijah fled into the desert wasteland, symbolic of a wasted life.

1.God meets with us when We Feel Alone Against the World

Elijah sent away his servant so that he could be alone. This behavior is characteristic of someone experiencing depression. Depression causes people to isolate themselves.

Satan uses feelings of inferiority and inadequacy to cause use to isolate and to pull within themselves, to have as little contact with others as possible. When a person rejects himself, he finds it difficult to enjoy other people.

Look at what Elijah says...

1 Kings 19:14 (NIV)

14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

But then at what he says just a few verses later...

1 Kings 19:18 (NIV)

18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

Elijah was scared for his life and said things that just simple aren’t true. That where most lies come from. They come from a place of fear.

But fear is a liar

fear is a liar when it says we are all alone. The truth says that God is with us and he has given us a family through his church

fear is a liar when it says you are ugly because the truth says that we are made in the image of God.

Fear is a liar when it robs us of our rest. How many times have you laid awake at 2 in the morning being consumed by anxious thoughts only to find out that God was already taking care of it?

fear is a liar when it says death has one because Jesus has conquered the grave and we have victory in Him!

2. God meets with us When it Seems as if We Have Given All and have nothing left to give

Elijah had expected the kingdom to turn to the one true God as a result of his endeavors and was appalled that Jezebel would seek his life.

Elijah had a traumatic experience when he stood before the altar and prayed to God for the fire from heaven to fall.

He was no doubt physically and emotionally exhausted. “He was worn out after the task of standing for God in the face of such opposition.”

If we are honest I think we can all say we have been there too. We have given our all and have nothing left to give. We have done all we can in all the ways we can. Still we can feel like we have failed friends, family, and God.

once again…fear is a liar

fear tells us that we aren’t being a good enough parent but the truth says to trust in God

fear tells us that what we do doesn’t matter but the truth says...

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we DO NOT GIVE UP!

3. God meets with us When the Road Ahead Seems Unclear

Elijah told the Lord that the Israelites were trying to kill him. So God told him to go stand on a mountain and that his presence would pass by. Similar to what God did with Moses.

Afterwards a powerful wind tore the mountains apart.

Then there was an earthquake

Then came a fire

the Lord was not in any of those.

God spoke in a Gentle Whisper. In the hussle and bussle of our every day lives. The voices in the media and on the tv we need to tune into the voice of God that is calm and reassuring.

When you go to the restaurant with someone it is easy to hear them when there aren’t a lot of people around.

But when the restaurant turns on the music or the tv it gets more difficult.

When people start packing the restaurant it gets more difficult. The person we are trying to listen to becomes a mere whisper.

If we really want to hear the other person then we will lean in to hear what they have to say.

This is what we have to do with God. When our lives are crowded with grief and guilt, sorrow and shame, remorse and regret or fear and failure

We need to lean in and hear what God has to say. His voice is one of healing, forgiveness, peace, reassurance, mercy, grace, and love.

He is the voice that quiets our fears!

APPLICATION:

What voice are you listening to today? The voice of fear or the voice of faith?

God meets us in our lonlyness,

God meets us when we are at the end of ourselves and having giving all that we can

God meets us when we dont know where to turn and where we are going

REMINDER: TAKE THE TITHES AND OFFERING!