Did

This week, we are talking about trusting God when it comes to facing a test. Today, we are going to look at some strange instructions God gave to Elijah. Elijah was God’s chosen “press secretary” during the reign of one of the worst kings in the history of Israel ... Ahab (check out 1 Kings 16:29-33). They both lived over 850 years before Jesus’ birth.


1 Kings 17
1 Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives - the God I serve - there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”
2 Then the Lord said to Elijah,
3 “Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook, near where it enters the Jordan River.
4 Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.”
5 So Elijah did as the Lord told him and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan.
6 The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook.
7 But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.


Did. In reading this short passage, I was challenged by a phrase, “the God I serve”, that led to a word ... “did”. It is easy to say we follow God or we serve God or we love God. It isn’t as easy to follow what God says or give up our time to serve or love others. It is easy to say we follow God when it comes to receiving God’s grace and forgiveness. It isn’t as easy to follow God when it comes to being gracious and extending forgiveness to others (especially the really annoying and hurtful ones). It is even easier to say we follow God when it comes to dealing with difficult people ... compared to following God when he starts messing with our finances and our relationships. The test for Elijah was whether or not he would follow God (trust God) when He asked him to do something “crazy” like be fed by ravens. The test for us is whether or not we will follow God when He asks us to do something “crazy” like forgive someone that has hurt us or love someone that isn’t nice to us or be generous with our resources or maintaining purity in our relationships.