What Are You Doing Here?

1 Kings 19:1–9 NKJV

1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.” 3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. 4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” 5 Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the Lord came back the second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.” 8 So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Pray: Heavenly Father, help us to find You and hear Your voice today. Amen.

I want to talk to you today about overcoming real challenges to your faith. I want to talk to you about overcoming feelings of heaviness, loneliness, weariness, and even depression.

I want to talk to you about finding God in the midst of the problems and pains of life.

Have you ever felt defeated, discouraged or depressed? Have you discovered that it can be difficult to hear from God or even find energy for faith when life is overwhelming?

Have you ever felt like you were a failure, or not good enough, or not capable enough to do what God called you to do?

James 5:17 (NKJV)

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours...

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours. He experienced all of these things.

Think about this for a moment:

Elijah the prophet — one of Israel’s greatest prophets. His ministry begins with prophesying to the king that it would not rain. And God stops the rain. God provides for him miraculously with meat and bread by the Brook. He does miracles for the widow and her son, first for provision during the famine and then even resurrecting the boy.

Then he confronts false prophets in front of the king and the nation and God responds to his faith with fire from heaven. The people choose God and the false prophets are killed.

Then he prays for rain and God responds by sending rain.

And then after that, Jezebel threatens him. And suddenly he feels defeated, discouraged and depressed.

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours.

Like Elijah, I suspect that even if we have had public victories, we have also had private struggles.

Just like Elijah’s mortal enemy Jezebel, the enemy of our souls will not stop coming after us (cf. Psalm 143.3). The world, flesh, and devil will continue to conspire to bring problems and pain into our lives ( cf. Ephesians 2.2-3).

The good news is that we can know and experience the truth that we are not alone.

God is with us.

God is for us.

And we can find Him even in the silence.

The Cave

There are a lot of things that we might use to try to overcome these feelings.

We could use medications or some other substance to dull our senses, make us numb to our experiences, or bring a moment of ecstasy in an otherwise dull or deadened life.

We could distract ourselves through busyness or religiosity.

We could immerse ourselves in entertainment and fantasy.

But none of these things will work to address the needs of our souls.

What if we could find something that does work?

What if we could learn to walk with God even in the midst of our struggles? What if we could learn to find Him and hear Him even when the pain is deafening? What if we could find our way out of the darkness and into the light (1 Peter 2.9)?

You need to know today that God is for you in every circumstance and in the face of everything you are confronted with. God is with you. And God has made a way through every valley and dark place (Psalm 23.4).

Out of the Cave

There are a number of things that we can learn from Elijah’s experience with God.

Be Honest About Your Situation

1 Kings 19:4 NKJV

But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!”

Elijah was honest about how he felt. He wanted to quit. He wanted to die. He felt that his situation was hopeless. He felt that he was a failure.

He went into the cave at the mountain and when God asked him what he was doing there he didn’t withhold his feelings before the Lord.

1 Kings 19:10 NKJV

So he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

He told God that he was zealous—passionate, jealous—for Him. But he felt let down because people turned their back on God, dismantled worship, and persecuted and killed His true followers.

He felt alone as though he was the only one who was trying to live right and do right.

Though he was in the cave, he did not hide in the darkness (cf. Genesis 3.7). He spoke from his heart.

And God received him. God did not rebuke him. God sent an angel who comforted and strengthened him. God gave him strength for forty days and forty nights while he traversed the wilderness toward the mountain of God. This phrase and this place points us back to another significant moment in Scripture. Moses spent 40 days in the presence of God on this mountain, not eating nor drinking, waiting to hear and receive the Law of God and the Old Covenant (Exodus 24.18; 34.28; Deuteronomy 9.9-11, 18). It points us forward to the 40 days and 40 nights that Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness as he was preparing to declare the gospel of a New Covenant (Matthew 4.2). These wilderness periods and times of dryness and difficulty often preceded a new season or significant event.

Miracles happen in the face of impossible situations.

In the hands of God our struggles become opportunities for Him to move.

Illustration: Whatever we hold on to we are responsible for; whatever we give to Him, He will be responsible for.

If you are struggling, don’t hide. Share it with God. Be honest with yourself. This is the first step towards freedom and healing and wholeness.

Move Towards God

Though he needed encouragement, Elijah chose to move towards God.

James 4:8 NKJV

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

James 5:16–17 NKJV

16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.

Drawing near is often pictured by prayer. And it is Elijah who is given as an example of drawing near and moving toward God in prayer.

And God responded.

1 Kings 19:11–12 NKJV

11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces 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 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.

We are reminded that Elijah was a man with a nature like ours.

If we are going to overcome the heaviness and depression and burdens we carry, we mustn’t avoid God. We need to move toward God.

We also can’t avoid the pain through medicine. Medicine can be helpful but it can’t restore the soul (cf. Isaiah 38.21).

We can’t avoid the pain through busyness, distracting ourselves with work, activities, or religious practices.

We can’t avoid the pain through entertainment and escape into a false reality.

But we can move toward God. We can keep pressing on until we find Him and hear His voice. He will help us along the way. He will give us bread—a word—to encourage and strengthen us as we keep moving forward. God was not in the wind. He was not in the earthquake. He was not in the fire.

But He was in the sound of silence, the gentle whisper of the still small voice.

Move toward God. As you do, you will find that He is right there with you, even if you can’t recognize it initially (cf. Luke 24.30-32).

Receive Help From God and Others

1 Kings 19:15–18 NKJV

15 Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria. 16 Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place. 17 It shall be that whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and whoever escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill. 18 Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

Elijah thought that he was alone, but he was not. Obadiah had hid 100 prophets of God so that Jezebel would not slaughter them (even through Elijah forgot about them - 1 Kings 18.4). God sent an angel (or messenger) to give him bread and water and encouragement (1 Kings 19.5-7).

And after he met God at the mountain God promised to raise up others to do the work of reformation.

God connected him with Elisha who would become his protégé and son in the faith.

And God told him there were 7000 more (a symbolic number) that were with him.

When you are feeling overwhelmed and discouraged you are not alone. God has those who He has sent to help bear your burdens (cf. Galatians 6.2). Don’t isolate yourself. Draw near to God and to His people and He will lead you out (cf. Proverbs 18.1).

Conclusion

There are times where things don’t work out like we want or expect. There are times when we don’t feel good enough or we feel like we are all alone.

There are times where we feel like we are in a dry place, or we want to hide or cover ourselves to shield ourselves from the heavy things of this life.

But God says, “What are you doing here?”

When He said this to Elijah, He wasn’t mad. He wasn’t forceful. He spoke in the whisper. He was gentle. He was close. And He reminded Elijah that he was never alone.

If you are feeling stressed, stretched, depressed or overwhelmed God is here for you.

Be honest with God and yourself.

Draw near to God and keep moving towards Him in faith.

Receive the help you need from Jesus and from the other people He has put in your life.

Romans 8:35–39 NKJV

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Pray: Father help those who are feeling overwhelmed, stressed, burdened, alone, or depressed. Help us hear Your voice. Remind us of your nearness. Let us be freed by Your love. In Jesus’ name, amen.