We welcome you to Stone's Hill today!

A typical Stone's Hill service has:

* music (so feel free to sing out);

* some announcements (things that are upcoming that you can be a part of);

* a message out of the Bible (God speaks to us through his Word);

* and an opportunity for you to respond to the message (either immediately in the case of a decision that needs to be made OR in the future as you live out the message in your daily life.)

So relax and enjoy your morning! We're so glad you are here!

MESSAGE TEXT
1 Kings 17:1-6
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God didn’t ask Elijah’s permission before he sent the ravens. I’m sure he didn’t ask because I think Elijah would have said, “Lord, I’ve got a better idea.” While ravens are super smart, they are basically scavengers whose number one meal is decaying flesh. One author described them as “flying garbage disposals”! No respectable Israelite ordinarily would eat a raven or food brought by a raven, and neither would we.
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Here’s what we think: “God, could you at least use a more picturesque bird to deliver this stuff?” Elijah knew his OT. According to the Old Testament book of Leviticus, chapter 11, the raven was considered an unclean animal! That meant you didn’t eat it or touch it or touch things that it touched. God chose to use something unclean!
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Whenever you and I are living by our brook of obscurity or isolation; when God pulls us into the secret place of His counsel, God says “I’m going to provide for you, but I’m going to do it in a way that meets your needs but that also serves as a message to your renegade nation.”
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Here is what Charles Spurgeon had to say: “Elijah had enough, but it did not always come to him in the nicest way; for I do not imagine that the ravens knew how to get bread and meat always cut into nicest shape. Perhaps they snatched a rough bit of meat here, and perhaps a crust of bread there, and it came in all sorts of ugly pieces, but still, there it was, and it was enough… Whatever God gives thee be grateful for, for if too proud to take from the raven’s mouth, it will be well for thee to go without, until thine hunger consume thy pride. God promises his people enough, but not more than enough, and even that enough may not come to us in the way we should choose.”
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APPLICATION
Have you ever been through Kerith Ravine? - totally cut off. We tend to forget that God is as interested in doing something in us as He is in doing something through us. You don’t have the showdown on Mt. Carmel unless you have the “Kerith Ravine” of preparation. We all like Elijah’s first assignment, “God, I want You to use me in the palace!” Boldly speak truth to authority! You go Elijah! That is spectacular! But we often hesitate on the second assignment. “Elijah, I want you to get to know Me in the wilderness. I want to pull you out of the limelight and the spotlight and tuck you away and out of everyone’s view but Mine.”
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While we would never volunteer for lonely obscurity, it is in the secret place where God’s choicest work is accomplished, where we learn God’s character best. No one swiping right on the dating app or pursuing us. No one calling back for a second interview. No one trying to make amends for all the hurt they’ve created. No one trying to get to know us. No one pursuing us for the interview. No one calling our name to get into the game.
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Our pride has to get pruned in “Kerith Ravine”. Our priorities must be changed. You may not literally go to where Elijah went, but you will have other life situations that will do the work of Kerith in your life: A place where you are trying to overcome shame. A place where you battle with bitterness. A place where you are dealing with difficult relatives. A place where you fight discouragement. A place where you war against a bad attitude. A place where you have to deal with injustice and unfairness. A place where you are learning to grow older. A place where you have been sorely let down by others. A place where you wonder if your prayer even matters. A place where you wonder if your presence even matters. A place where you have run out of choices. A place where you are disappointed with God. A place where you see evil in its darkest depths. A place where you are confused. All of these places are opportunities for “Kerith Ravine” to do its deepest work in our lives! That is what Kerith looks like and feels like… Somewhere east of Jordan, in the wilderness, by the brook, with the ravens, with the water… alone with God.
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INVITATION
The New Testament talks about how the spirit of Elijah came through John the Baptist to prepare people for the coming of Messiah – the Lord Jesus Christ. Elijah’s mission, this Elijah who stood on the Mt of Transfiguration, bearing witness to the beauty of Jesus – Elijah’s mission is to ultimately bring you to Him. Won’t you come today?