We all have people we look up to, people we admire, people we wish we could be like. Even as a Christian we see people we want to imitate. Then there are those people we say I could never be like them. They are some kind of super spiritual saint with abilities I could never have. But why not? If their God is your God, the Holy Spirit they have is the same one indwelling you, why can’t we be like them? In fact, I want to use a passage of Scripture that says we can be like some of those “Bible Heroes”. James, the brother of Jesus, while writing about powerful prayer says this. “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, . . .” (James 5:17 English Standard Version)  Other translations say Elijah was a man like us. Here was a man who when he prayed the rain would stop, it did for three years. As I sit here in Pennsylvania under another flood watch and just after another snow storm I would like to pray the weather away. Then he prayed for it to rain and it did. So what is it about Elijah? Over the next few posts I want to explore that briefly.

Elijah Was Developed

This I believe was the first, and possibly most important part of the process. You can find the account in 1 Kings 17:1-7. Elijah has just predicted a drought. These are bad days in Israel. King Ahab and his wife Jezebel have led the country deep into idolatry and God is grieved. Now he sends Elijah away into isolation. Elijah ends up at a place called brook Cherith. Here God sends food to Elijah by ravens. So how is this developing Elijah?

God is about to do mighty things to get Israel’s attention and Elijah is a key part of that. But Elijah needs to be ready. Elijah needs to learn to trust completely in what God is doing. So here by the brook Cherith God is training Elijah. He is training him to be still and listen. Listen for the voice of God by getting rid of all the other voices and distractions.

Learn to trust. Away from all the natural sources of food, God is delivering food to Elijah by a very unusual method. Elijah is learning that God does provide for his needs. The Psalmist said he has never seen the righteous forsaken.

Elijah is about to enter a hostile environment and face impossible odds. He is also learing that with God as His provider there is nothing to fear.

Where is God developing you? Where are you learning to be still and to trust? Maybe you are wondering why God does not seem as prevalent in your life. You think God is using others more than you, and you want to be used. Maybe you need to learn to trust and be silent.

The loss of a job, a health issue, loss of friends? Suddenly you have more time on your hands. Is it now that you can redeem that time and listen to God? Do you need to re order your day so you have time to silence the other voices and listen, before God does it for you? Maybe you (like me) became to confident in your own abilities to provide for yourself and you stopped trusting even though you would never admit it. It could be why God took away my job, so I could have time to listen and learn to trust Him over myself.

Moses had 40 years in a desert. Jesus had 40 days in the desert. Paul had a time of blindness and then three years in Arabia. Times to be still and learn to trust.

 I want to add a disclaimer here. Elijah did not have a believing community to go to it would seem. Elijah and the others are not the excuse to cut yourself off from a local church to say all I need is God. Yes, you absolutely need time ALONE with God. But you NEED a local church, with other believers who can speak into your life, to help you in areas where you are weak, and that you can minister to. I have learned in my job loss, that God is meeting my needs physically and spiritually through my local church. Something I would not have if I said all I need is me and God alone.

God will not give you time with Himself so you can use it for yourself. As we will see with Elijah, time alone was preparation for time with others.

 Do you want to be like an Elijah? You need time alone where God can develop you as you listen and learn to trust.

Next time, when 1 man took out over 400 opponents in a day.