“I have had enough, Lord,…” 1 Kings 19:4b
Have you ever come to the point in your life where you’re just done “adulting” for one day? Perhaps the challenges at work, or the mounting house work, or the endless “to do” list has all just gotten the better of you…and you have had enough? Have you been there? I would imagine many of us have had those days where you contemplated why you even got out of bed. Some days are just life that, and it seems the entire world wants a piece of you. Rest assured, there will be better days. All of us have experienced bad days and even bad years. Life is certainly challenging and it isn’t always puppy dogs and rainbows, no matter how much we wish it were. But the encouraging thing is life, and all that happens to us will eventually pass, and we have a God who journeys alongside us. We are never alone in our struggles…and our bad days. Another important thing to note is that our perspective on things always makes a difference. Having a bad day? Will you allow it to affect your spirit and the eternal joy God has given you? I hope the answer is “no”…that we will keep on keeping on despite the bad days, the trials and the set-backs.
The prophet Elijah certainly had his fair share of bad days. The funny thing is he had just had a monumental victorious day, when he challenged all the prophets of Baal. (see 1 Kings 18:16-46) Elijah, called down fire upon a completely soaked altar and God made Himself known thereby defeating these false prophets and their fake god Baal. You would thing this great victory would have lasted for a while, but instead Elijah is on the run and afraid for his life. King Ahab and wicked Queen Jezebel want him dead. Elijah is worn and weary, emotionally and physically spent, he lays down under a boom bush in the wilderness and asks God if he could just die. He even says to God, “I have had enough…” Imagine that! One of the most powerful Prophets of ancient times asking to die because life had become extremely hard. He felt defeated. He felt alone. He thought it would be better to be taken to heaven than live another day on earth.
We experience days like this from time to time. Perhaps not to the extreme of Elijah…but perhaps some of us have. When those days come, I pray that like Elijah, God will encourage you, strengthen you and remind you that you are most certainly not alone!
Prayer: Dear Lord, I pray for those who are struggling today. I ask that you place a hand of encouragement upon them. Lord, I too struggle with these days, thank you for reminding me of your constant presence and that I am given strength that is not my own, but yours. Protect me from the evil one who tries to remind me of my many failures and discourages me from carrying on. Shine your light of hope into my life today, and fill me with your peace even amidst the many storms of life. Thank you dear Lord for being here for me!
-Amen
I cannot stress how important it is for leaders of all positions to listen to those who are actively engaged on the ground in the fight!
We cannot afford to have polarizing visions when we should all be seeking to remain mission minded and focused. There’s no time for that! Leaders who listen and then lead have a better chance at successfully navigating and accomplishing their objectives in mission! If leaders only dictate from their offices that are tucked away from mission we will fail because administration can only meet mission when it has its ear to the ground and a heart to serve in the capacity of servant-leader. Enough with the old guard of “my way or the highway” brass! Yes be strict on mission-mindedness but compassionate on leading and shepherding! Be a shepherd first and listen!
I think sometimes what keeps us in our bubbles is the fear of what leadership might do if we try new things that don’t necessarily “look Army”. Is there fear of reprisal and punishment for not maintaining the status quo? Perhaps it’s time to pop the bubble!
Sometimes we don’t get a choice with which giants we have to face. We have to press onward and actually face them, because if we don’t they won’t just go away and we will be powerless and frozen in our fears. Facing the giants also means reliance on a strength that isn’t our own. God will provide you the strength that you need, but it also requires us to admit that we need help and that we cannot do it on our own. When we let go of this nothing of going it alone, we are freed from the shackles of self-doubt and self-reliance.
While I was tending to this little cut that had become something more, it got me thinking that this is just like hurt and grudges. At the beginning when the wound is inflicted, it doesn’t seem like much. Sure, you feel hurt or wounded by words that were said to you, or things someone has done to you, but you “toughen up” and fight back. At least that’s how I work. I hit back. I respond, sometimes even lashing out. -It’s just a little cut.- But, maybe a few days later, or months later, you discover that this little cut has become a bigger issue that you originally thought. It has festered and become swollen, so much so that it has infected your heart and how you think about THAT person or group. Finally, you have a decision to make…will you allow this wound to continue to fester and eventually poison your whole body (spirit and soul too)? Or will you drain the wound and put ointment on it so that you can heal and move on…and not just live, but thrive?
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we have to drain the wounds in our lives in order for us to become fully like Christ in every way, shape and form. We can declare that we want to be holy, and that we want to be the very image of Christ in our world, but it is only lip service if we haven’t dealt with these infected wounds in our lives. For some of us, these wounds run more deeply than we realize…and we need the Holy Spirit to help us sterilize and heal them. It may take us time to heal, but we must make this a priority in order for us to grow into this grace and knowledge of Christ.
This isn’t an easy road. There will be sacrifices along the way, but know that when you commit to him, be faithful to that…don’t have an exit strategy in case it doesn’t work out. It’s either all in or nothing at all. There can be no middle ground, and half-hearted attempts at an obedience relationship to Christ. Are you prepared for such a radical relationship? Are you prepared to deny yourself and take up your cross and follow him?
The priority here is not witnessing. That might sound shocking to some of you. But the very first priority is being holy people. When we live up to being truly set apart for God, then the outpouring of our hearts will be our testimony and our praise to Him. Sometimes we are so action oriented and about getting things done and checking another item off of our “to do” list that we forget to simply be in the presence of God. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” This isn’t some egotistical announcement from God, instead it is a reminder of the very first priority of our life – Keep God first above all other things! Set apart in your heart a place for Him – in ALL THINGS! When we place this at the forefront of all that we do, we will find that everything is now viewed through the lens of God – and this will make all of the difference. Forget about what you will say to others about Jesus…that might sound funny. But stop worrying about what comes next in your witness to others, and BE in the presence of God – from this will flow your adoration and love so that others will see and believe.
This reminded me of another story. A story that Jesus told. It was about a woman who had lost one of her ten silver coins. This may have been all that she owned in the world, and losing just one of those coins would have been devastating to her. So she tears her house apart looking for this lost coin until she finds it. Then she calls her neighbors together to celebrate with her. Jesus told this tale to illustrate just how important every person on this earth is to Him. He doesn’t want to lose anyone along the way. In fact, just before this story Jesus told another story – the parable of the lost sheep, and at the very end of that story He said, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Pastor's Ponderings 