Dear God, When Is It My Turn?Àpẹrẹ

Day 2: Provision For Those Who Wait

Have you ever had a mountaintop experience with God only for it to be followed by disappointment? Perhaps as you are reading this you find yourself in a spiritual cave. In 1 Kings 19, the Prophet Elijah finds himself in a similar dilemma. He is at the top of Mount Carmel where he prays and fire comes down and consumes the false prophets of Jezebel. I think this is where my ancestors must have gotten the saying “Die by fire!” Elijah is on a spiritual high. As soon as Jezebel finds out what Elijah has done she issues a hit on him and promises that in less than twenty-four hours his fate would be just like that of the false prophets God devoured.

When the news reaches Elijah he is gripped by fear and he takes off running a day's journey where he finds himself at the entrance of a cave praying to God. This time his prayers are not like the powerful ones he commanded on Mount Carmel. This time Elijah is praying to God to die. Have you ever had an experience so defeating that you felt the only escape was death?

“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 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.” Romans 8:38-39

Perhaps as you are in your season of waiting on God you’ve encountered the kind of circumstances that seemingly points less to the promise and more to impending opposition and pain. In verse five the angel of the Lord comes to Elijah but he does not reprimand, condemn or penalize Elijah for having succumbed to the weariness that comes with warfare or in our case waiting. The Angel touches Elijah’s hand and says “Arise and eat.” Right there at the mouth of the cave, Elijah finds refreshment, a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. This happens a few times followed by this admonishment, “Arise and eat for the journey is too great for you.”

God empathizes with the kind of weariness that comes from being between a rock and a hard place and as the Bread of Life and the Living Water, He is the refreshment we need daily to sustain us in our waiting. The scripture says that Elijah arose and went on in the strength of that refreshment, a forty-day journey. Right there in whatever cave you have crawled into to find comfort in your waiting, God has and has a refreshing waiting for you.

Prayer:

Dear God, I am thankful that you understand the frailty of my humanity as I struggle to strive through the weariness I am experiencing as I wait on your word to complete its work in my life. Bread of Life, I receive your Word and your Spirit as the refreshing I need to go on. In Jesus' name, amen.

Pro Tip For Seasons of Waiting:

Your physical body needs to be in top shape for your purpose to be operationalized. Don’t forget to eat well, add an extra hour to your sleep, and avoid the guilt trap that is often associated with resting.

Reminder:

The refreshment you need is never out of reach. How might God have strategically set you up to encounter His Word and presence? God is not judging you because your season of waiting has led you to a dark place. Instead, He is waiting on you to turn to Him one more time for the refreshing you need to lighten your load.