Tag Archives: 1 kings

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Life’s Darkest Moments

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Our Daily Bread

1 Kings 19:1-8

An angel touched [Elijah], and said to him, “Arise and eat.” —1 Kings 19:5

Charles Whittlesey was a hero’s hero. Leader of the so-called “Lost Battalion” in World War I, he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery when his unit was trapped behind enemy lines. When the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was dedicated, Charles was chosen to serve as pallbearer for the first soldier laid to rest there. Two weeks later, it is presumed that he ended his own life by stepping off a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean.

Like Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-7), Charles was publicly strong, but in the quiet, post-public moments, his feelings of despair set in. People today frequently face situations bigger than they can handle. Sometimes it’s temporary despair brought on by fatigue, as in Elijah’s case. He had been part of a great victory over the prophets of Baal (18:20-40), but then he feared for his life and ran into the wilderness (19:1-3). But often, it’s more than despair and it’s more than temporary. That’s why it is imperative that we talk about depression openly and compassionately.

God offers His presence to us in life’s darkest moments, which enables us, in turn, to be His presence to the hurting. Crying out for help—from others and from God—may be the strongest moment of our lives. —Randy Kilgore

Father, grant us the candor to admit to each

other that sometimes life overwhelms us. And

grant us the courage to help others find

help—and to seek it when we need it.

Hope comes with help from God and others.

Bible in a year: Psalms 120-122; 1 Corinthians 9

Insight

Elijah, deemed Israel’s greatest prophet, was highly revered and well spoken of by the Jews, by the Lord Jesus Himself, and by the apostles (Matt. 17:10-11; Luke 1:17; Rom. 11:2-4, James 5:17-18). He appeared with Moses at the transfiguration of Jesus (Matt. 17:3). Because Elijah did not die (2 Kings 2:1), the Jews believed he would come back again (Mal. 4:5). Many scholars believe that Elijah will be one of the two witnesses mentioned in Revelation 11.

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Preparation for Greater Service

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Charles Stanley

1 Kings 17:1-24

In Luke 17:5, the apostles asked Christ to increase their faith. The Lord told them that if they had faith as small as a mustard seed, they could do great things. God does not enlarge our faith instantly. He begins with what little we have and proceeds to grow it.

Elijah was in a faith-building program. The Lord gave him increasingly difficult challenges of reliance and obedience. At the brook Cherith, the prophet had to depend on God for his own survival. Then, at Zarephath, he trusted the Lord to provide for both himself and a widow. Finally, he served her in an even larger way by raising her dead son to life.

Each act of believing God and the ensuing step of obedience resulted in increased opportunities for Elijah to serve the Lord and others. Raising the dead may seem like the height of his ministry, but it was to be followed by an even greater opportunity to influence an entire nation for God. Elijah was about to face the biggest spiritual battle of his life (1 Kings 18)—all his previous demonstrations of faith and obedience were the Lord’s way of preparing him.

God wants each of us to be influential in His kingdom. He knows which faith challenges to present so that we can be entrusted with even greater tasks.

The Lord will provide occasions for you to believe Him and respond in obedience. These situations are what we call “problems.” Begin to look at each difficulty as an opportunity designed by God specifically for the purpose of increasing your faith so He can do great things in and through you.

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – By the Brook   

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greglaurie

The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook. —1 Kings 17:6

When the Bible says that ravens brought Elijah food, it doesn’t mean they took his order, flew through the local fast food restaurant, and then delivered his meal. Ravens are scavengers. They brought little bits of meat and bread to Elijah. What’s more, the water in the brook from which he drank would have been somewhat polluted. It wasn’t an easy situation by any stretch.

How easily Elijah could have said, “Well, Lord, I don’t really want to be in this crummy little place, drinking river water. I kind of like being in front of people. I like the limelight.” But the Lord was preparing Elijah for something beyond his wildest dreams. Not long after this, Elijah would be standing on Mount Carmel in that great showdown with the false prophets (see 1 Kings 18:20-40).

Sometimes we don’t like where God has put us. We say, “Lord, I don’t like this situation. I don’t like where I am. I want to do something great for You. I want to make a difference in my world.” Maybe the Lord wants you to be effective right where you are. Maybe He wants you to take advantage of the opportunities in front of you and be faithful in the little things. Who knows what God has in store for you?

If God has you by some muddy little brook, so to speak, just hang in there. Be faithful, do what He has already told you, and wait on Him and on His timing. God will do something wonderful for you or with you. Just be available and open to do what He would have you to do.

Today’s devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – A Strange Time for Fear

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Charles Stanley

1 Kings 19:1-4

Normally, we think of fear in terms of failure. We tend to become afraid when we experience a major setback and feel inadequate. Or we may be shaken when we’ve made a big mistake and believe that our judgment is flawed. At such times, we would almost expect fear to strike, right?

We find a radically different situation in 1 Kings 18, where Elijah experienced one of the most dramatic triumphs in all of Scripture. Armed with only his unflinching faith in the Lord, he faced down 850 priests of the local false deities. God moved mightily, destroying the idolaters and bringing glory to Himself throughout Israel. It was a fantastic win.

But right after this confrontation, when the exuberance of his faith should have been at its height, Elijah became scared. In 1 Kings 19, the prophet learned that the evil queen Jezebel had called for his death. Apparently forgetting God’s mighty victory just moments before, Elijah ran away. How could this be?

Elijah’s story reminds us that our failures may not pose the greatest danger to spiritual growth after all; potential for destruction may actually lie hidden within our successes. That’s when our confidence is at its peak, which often leads us to turn our eyes away from the Giver of strength and toward our self.

Your victory is always in God’s hand. Don’t be fooled: He may work in, around, or through you to achieve His purpose, but it is always His victory. Have you been distracted by success? Turn your eyes back to the Lord. All praise and glory are His. And fear need not be yours.

 

 

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Where Our Fears Live

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Our Daily Bread

1 Kings 17:17-24

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. —Psalm 56:3

Twelve years into our marriage, my wife and I were discouraged by the emotional roller-coaster of hopes raised and dashed in attempting to have children. A friend tried to “explain” God’s thinking. “Maybe God knows you’d be a bad father,” he said. He knew that my mother had struggled with a terrible temper.

Then, Christmas 1988, we learned we were expecting our first child! But now I had this nagging fear of failure.

The following August, Kathryn joined our family. As nurses and doctors tended to my wife, Kathryn cried on the warming tray. I offered my hand to comfort her, and her tiny fingers wrapped around my finger. In that instant, the Holy Spirit swept through me, assuring me of what I had only recently doubted—that I would show love to this little one!

The widow of Zarephath also had doubts. Her son had been struck with a lethal illness. In her despair she cried out, “Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to kill my son?” (1 Kings 17:18). But God had other plans!

We serve a God who is mightier than the struggles we inherit and who is full of the desire to forgive, love, and heal the brokenness that rises up between us and Him. God is present in the places where our fears live. —Randy Kilgore

Father, make Yourself known to us in our weakest

moments and in our greatest fears. Teach us to

receive Your love in a way that enables us to show

it to others, especially those closest to us.

Love swims against the current of life’s false fears.

Bible in a year: Leviticus 11-12; Matthew 26:1-25

 

Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg – Meant for Service

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Alistair Begg

And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights.

1 Kings 19:8

All the strength supplied to us by our gracious God is meant for service, not for indulgence or pride. When the prophet Elijah found the cake baked on the coals and the jar of water placed at his head as he lay under the juniper tree, he was not being given a special treat that he could lie back and enjoy–he was being sustained so that he could fulfill his responsibilities for the next forty days and forty nights. When the Master invited the disciples to come and eat with Him, after the meal was over He said to Peter, “Feed my sheep,” then added, “Follow me.”

It is the same for us; we eat the bread of heaven so that we can expend our strength in the Master’s service. We come to the table and eat of the paschal lamb in a spirit of readiness, so that we may leave as soon as we have satisfied our hunger.

Some Christians are for living on Christ but are not so anxious to live for Christ. Earth should be a preparation for heaven; and heaven is the place where saints feast most and work most. They sit down at the table of our Lord, and they serve Him day and night in His temple. They eat of heavenly food and offer perfect service.

Believer, in the strength you daily gain from Christ, work for Him. Some of us have a lot to learn concerning the design of our Lord in giving us His grace. We are not to hide the precious grains of truth without giving that truth an opportunity to grow: We must sow it and water it. Why does the Lord send the rain upon the thirsty earth and give the sunshine? Is it not in order that sun and rain may help the fruits of the earth to yield food for us? Even so the Lord feeds and refreshes our souls so that we may use our renewed strength in the promotion of His glory.