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How God Shapes Our LivesElijah is a hero of the Old Testament – an amazing man, whose life was so significant that some thought Jesus was Elijah reborn! The king during Elijah’s lifetime was Ahab, the worst king in a succession of 19 evil kings; and he was married to the wicked Jezebel. They worshiped Baal and Asherah, gods to whom children were sacrificed, and where sex with temple prostitutes was a part of worship. It was an evil time - there was no virtue. God had had enough. He chose to use one man, Elijah, to confront the evil. No background of Elijah is given. Essentially, he was a nobody from nowhere, and appears on the scene addressing King Ahab: “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, whom I serve, there will be neither This was a society that lived on farming. No rain meant economic collapse. Elijah gave a one sentence proclamation before this evil king, basically saying, “It’s over.” God then leads the prophet into a place of hiding, taking him out of the game for a long time, to build in him the character needed for the next step. If God is going to do something through us, God took Elijah through three seasons of preparation and character development. 1. Isolated pain “Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah, The word Kerith means cut-off or cut down. Elijah found himself very alone. Here God would teach him what it meant to trust Him. God was going to humble him privately, so that He could use him publicly. We can never do anything meaningful in this life until we’ve been to 2. Total dependence bread and meat. God’s supply didn’t look reasonable or normal, but He was teaching Elijah that he could trust Him, that He was his supply. Whenever God is teaching us to trust Him, we may only get enough of whatever it is we need to get us to the next provision. 3. Unconditional Obedience Kerith Ravine. He didn’t have to worry about Ahab and Jezebel while there. But he needed to move on. Trusting isn’t a passive act, it’s a growing process.
Elijah lost his provision of water. The natural tendency would be to ask, “What did I do wrong?” And it’s true that sometimes we need to make adjustments. But that’s not the only possibility. Sometimes the brook dries up because God wants to get us moving. It’s not about the brook, it’s about the Provider. God told Elijah that a widow in Zarepheth would now supply his needs. When he gets there, he sees a woman and asks her for water and food. The widow replied that she had only enough for one last meal for her son and herself, and that they would then die. Elijah told her not to be afraid. So she prepared the meal, giving some to Elijah. From that day on the oil and flour in the woman’s house never ran out. Sometime later the woman’s son got sick and died. Elijah picked up the boy and brought him to an “upper room” and laid him on a bed. Three times he put his own body over the body of the boy. The third time, the boy came back to life. No one had ever done that before in history. Elijah had received the greatest gift: the ability to imagine beyond the barriers. He was no longer constrained by systems and norms, Now Elijah was ready. Armed with imagination, trust and obedience, he could fulfill God’s great plan for his life. --------------------------- We encourage you to read 1Kings:17 read the chapter Application Questions: 1)In 1 Kings 17:2-3, God led Elijah to a period of hiding in the Kerith Ravine. Kerith means “cut off or cut down.” How has God used painful experiences in your life to shape you into who you are today? 2)God taught Elijah to depend on Him daily for food and water. What are you trusting God for in your life today? 3)After the brook dried up, Elijah trusted God’s word to move on to Zarephath. Is there a “dry brook” in your life God is using to lead you to take a step of faith?
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