All Dried Up

So he went and did according to the word of the Lord, for he went and stayed by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook. And it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. 1 Kings 17:5-7

It’s a common teaching in today’s church that if a ministry is drying up that it is a sign from the Lord to move on. There was a time I would have unconditionally believed that. However, if that were the case, as the Brook Cherith slowed to a trickle, Elijah might have uttered, “Oh well, I guess the Lord isn’t in this thing anymore, I better get going.” But that is not what Elijah did.

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Arise, go to Zarephath… 17:8-9

Elijah went to the brook because the Lord commanded him to and he didn’t leave, despite the parched conditions, until the Lord told him to. What’s the Lord told you to do and more importantly, has He rescinded the directive? Is it the ministry that’s bone-dry, or your faith?

Is God Still With Me?

How will you know if God is still in the thing He brought you to? How did Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego know? They knew because like Elijah, they were at peace in their hostile environment; they weren’t burned-out, nor were they freaking out. They were able to rest in the words that they heard.

…And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7

I recently had an experience hosting a golf tournament to raise money for a Christian ministry; an event that I truly felt led by the Lord to undertake. I found the work associated with it to be unproblematic, but I did struggle with the lack of a response—many had said they would play, but few were actually signing up. I thought and shared with others, including my pastor, ‘is this thing drying up?’ and a few people suggested that I throw in the towel. I didn’t because I believed God led me to it and I hadn’t heard from Him to abandon the cause.

Long story short, the golf event was successful and I believe that the Lord allowed it to progress the way it did (at least in part) to reveal and teach me the lesson that is being conveyed here in 1 Kings 17—if God brings you to a thing, He will be faithful to bring you through it. Moving on is not an option until God says so.

And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, He gave a command to depart to the other side…Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Matthew 8:18, 23-26

Don’t Forget the Word That You Heard

Why were the disciples fearful? Because they forgot. They had forgotten what Jesus had said to them at the start; that He had given the command to depart to the other side. Didn’t they know if Jesus said that they’re going over to the other side, that’s exactly where they’re going to end up? Don’t we know? Let us endeavor to stay in the boat God has placed us until He tells us to abandon the ship.

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These ramblings are typically (but not always) a byproduct inspired by God through my personal Bible study at SearchLight with Pastor Jon Courson

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Someone’s Gonna Die

Then Joshua charged them at that time, saying, “Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates.” Joshua 6:26

Our Father is in the demolition business; that is to say He takes pleasure in tearing down the corrupt walls in our lives. It’s one of the countless miracles God lovingly executes for His children. There are likely scores of individuals reading this who can testify how the Lord appeared with His divine wrecking ball after having made petitions to Him to raze an obstacle or eradicate an addiction. In that light, it stands to reason that it would be foolishness to rebuild that which the Lord has demolished, but yet we often do.

In the text today, God through Joshua gives us a warning, “Do this foolish thing and someone’s gonna die,” (paraphrase mine). And in case anyone thought God was kidding, He would later give us an example in First Kings through a man named Hiel.

In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the Lord, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun. 1 Kings 16:34

Hiel dismissed God’s warning and as a result paid a hefty price. At this point let no man say this is a case of a loving God acting harshly, but rather [say] this is a case of an intelligent man acting recklessly. When we set out to rebuild that which the Lord has destroyed, someone or something is going to die.

It’s my own testimony (without exposing all the minutiae), that a long successful career was killed. Additionally, I have known many others who have lost family (both figuratively and literally) and in some cases, their own lives—all because they restored the walls that God had removed. I suspect that you can either relate or know someone who can.

God’s position is deadly serious—when He acts to eliminate a barrier, we would be best served to not re-establish it. Experience is without any doubt the best teacher, but our Father in Heaven would remind us that it doesn’t have to be our experience.

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Who Was That Woman I Saw You With?

But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. Revelation 12:14Nothing New

There is really nothing new in the Book of Revelation. The Revelation (in part) is in the understanding that everything contained within the text is found throughout the Old and New Testaments. In the Book of Revelation, Jesus has brought all the imagery and prophesies into one volume, so that we might better see the things that were, the things that are, and the things that will be.

With that appreciation, we can know that the woman spoken of here (Revelation 12:14) is the apple of God’s eye; the nation of Israel. We can also deduce that ‘a time and times and half a time’ is equal to ‘1 + 2 + ½ = 3 ½ ’ which is another reference to the latter half of the seven year Tribulation period: 3 ½ years (or 1260 days).

Who Then is the Great Eagle

There is some speculation that the ‘great eagle’ is the United States of America. It certainly seems to make sense, for America indeed stands with Israel today, but the truth is that we cannot be dogmatic about that position. The truth is that God, according to His will and purpose, can do the eagle-thing entirely on His own without any assistance whatsoever. Our proof text is found in Exodus 19:4

’You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself

Our strength, our hope, our faith is built on and focused upon the One who can and, as today’s scripture promises, the One who will.

The Debate

Today’s subject matter frequently stirs the debate within our Christian circles, “If God is able to provide for all the needs of those living in poverty today, why doesn’t He do so?”

The answer is simply this, “God is able and at this particular moment in time He has elected to use His body, the Church to accomplish this feat.”

 

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