I Kings 18: 36-37

The following is a devotional I wrote years ago for Alpha-Omega:

Prayer is foundational in the life of a believer. It is our means of communicating directly with our creator. Throughout the Bible we read many examples of the power and importance of prayer. A notable example
from the Old Testament is that of the life of Elijah. In I Kings we read about how Elijah was able to perform incredible miracles such as calling down fire from heaven and restoring a widow's child to life again, all accomplished by God's power through prayer. Elijah trusted in God and called on Him during time
of trial, such as when he faced off against the fifty prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. Even in a very frightening situation in which he was alone and seriously outnumbered, Elijah's prayer was one of complete and total devotion to God, in which he asked of God for a display of His power before the false prophets, wicked King Ahab and the multitudes of Israel:

“O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so there people will know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again” (I Kings 18: 36-37)

God responded to Elijah's prayer, displayed His might to the assembly, and brought about change in the heart of Israel (vs. 39). And just as Elijah was consistent in his prayer throughout his ministry, we too should continue to be persistent in our own prayers (I Thes. 5:17), knowing that God hears our
prayers and knows all of our needs and wants.  And while not all prayers are answered, we know that sometimes God does not answer our prayers for a specific reason, the reason not always known to us. This can be difficult to understand sometimes, especially when the unanswered prayer is in regards to needs of a friend or family member. But we understand that as we faithfully bring our petitions to God, we ask that “God's will be done” over that of our own wants and desires, and by doing so we fully put our faith in God to provide for our needs.  So continue to pray fervently, both privately and with one another, and when you bring your petitions to God, rely on Him totally for all of your needs. Remember that God speaks to us through his Word, the Bible, and we respond to that message to God through our prayers. It's an awesome two-way communication that we get to share with the sovereign Creator of the universe.

I Kings 17: 1-7

Phil Johnson has an excellent message posted online about the topic of Biblical manliness, using I Kings 17 specifically and the account of Elijah in the wilderness as a prime example of a manly Biblical figure. Living in the wilderness and surviving on the water of a drying creek and whatever the ravens delivered definitely counts as roughing it as far as I'm concerned.  In discussing the topic of "defeminizing the church", Pastor Phil points out the obvious fact that there are no "soft, effeminate" heroes of the faith. Even Jesus, often portrayed as the blue-eyed, meek-and-mild peace-lover, would in fact often provoke arguments and challenges to others, and wasn't afraid to bundle together a whip to drive out the money changers.  So we read how Elijah really stands out as one of the "tough-guys" of the Bible, wearing fur and leather and living in the woods under a juniper plant (which Pastor Phil describes as a scratchy, avoidable plant you wouldn't normally want to be under.)

With Elijah we see him initially appear on the scene, confront Ahab and pronounce no rain for three years. But then, instead of going into any other sort of action, he is then sent out to live three years in the wilderness, completely cut off from culture and society (in a situation similar to that of others in the Bible who also spent a measure of time in wilderness isolation, such as Moses and Jesus.) To us, this may look like wasted opportunity and wasted time to our carnal eyes, but this time in the wilderness was a time of trust, and a time of private instruction. Often the outworking of God's providence can seem to work to detriment in our eyes, but as was the case of Elijah, God used this time to develop and prepare Elijah for his ministry work. From this time of isolation, Elijah emerged with faith stronger than ever.

We can often question why God would work through situations and scenarios that we don't understand, such as trial and persecution, but God's providence often works in situations we do not understand to help develop and unfold our character, and to further strengthen us for His service.

Other Phil Johnson sermons