I Kings 19:18
“Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
This is God’s response to Elijah’s report. Elijah shared a grim response and concluded it by saying “and I alone am left.” Meaning there are no more people that serve You, except me. Elijah went through an enormous ordeal. It was highly successful. Then something came that he didn’t expect, a death threat from the queen. It scared him. Rightly so. He took off. God gave him rest and food for several days. Then brought him to a place quite far and restored him. Then God says this. Basically saying, “You are not alone, Elijah.”
I would say Elijah’s fear was the work of the evil one. He put that thought in his mind and he accepted it. He does that to us as well. He would like to do much more than that, but God has him on a leash. We are God’s children. He only lets so much to get to us. He has a hedge about us (Psalm 3:3).
We go through ups and downs. We are to look to Him always and know that He is in control. Even though it doesn’t feel like it. Elijah was the greatest of the prophets and he heard from God. Yet, he got this wrong. We will get things wrong, also.
I Peter 4:12 has great advice for us, ”Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you.” Peter words it this way because we do get surprised. Elijah was. Even though we will become frightened nothing should get our blood pressure up. When it does, we need to go back to this verse. Don’t be surprised.
God has His purposes. Hebrews 12:6 explains it even more, “For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” He is teaching us things. Just as a parent teaches a child, so God is teaching us. Sometimes it’s corrective as if we did something wrong, other times it’s teaching and passing on wisdom. That’s what it is.
What a blessing to have an all-wise God teaching us. He is brilliant beyond our understanding. He’s like having the greatest Father and the greatest life coach working on our behalf. Few of us would be able to afford this on a human level. Yet, we’ve got the Greatest.
As I look back on my life in which I’ve walked with God for 44 years, since I was 17 years old. I am very grateful. I’ve been spared much by His protective hand. I’ve been guided to a career that has been so rewarding and enjoyable. I met and have been blessed by a great wife. I’ve got great friends and a wonderful new direction the past 15 years. None of this would have happened without Him.
To think that He’s not done with us. There are more amazing things ahead of us. To bring this back into context, He can use difficult events to steer us in the directions that promise more untold blessings. We don’t have to fear anything. We will still run into scary events, but He will bring us through. Lord, help us to let Your peace reign in our hearts (Colossians 3:15). Thank You, Lord.