A Journey Too Hard

 “‘Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.’ So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food…” 1 Kings 19:7b

I think it is safe to say that Elijah must have had expectations that failed to materialize. He had followed every detail that God had established to bring His people back to Him. He had courageously gone through the experience displaying total and inspiring faith. He had publicly called on God to act on his behalf and show Himself mighty to all who had watched. And yet, Elijah found himself all alone after the fact dejected…disillusioned…disgusted…despaired! I wonder if he chose to withdraw from praying for a bit after experiencing the lack of success he perceived. Afterall, hearts did not turn…the king and queen were not impressed…his life was threatened instead of rewarded. I wonder if there was a part of him that felt like the previous experience was all in vain…void of any gain.

Aren’t we the same when we feel God has somehow failed us? He has the power to change everything but sometimes change is not His will. I have always felt that the greater the faith, the more painful the sting when God doesn’t move in the direction we want. There are things that we will never understand on this side of heaven, but thankfully the Maker of all things fully understands our pain. He beckons us to arise…to lift our eyes to heaven…and eat and drink…to receive the comfort of nourishment only He can provide…He acknowledges that the journey is too tough to move through it without Him. How tender is our God and how understanding is His heart. Through this exchange in the time that followed the failed expectation Elijah had, God was concerned with soothing his soul, nourishing his body, and encouraging his spirit despite Elijah's emotions.

‘God is not mad at you because your body is tired or your mind is frayed or your soul is heavy – not after the kind of project you’ve just finished, or the difficulties you’ve just endured, or the emotional marathon you’ve just run. He isn’t agitated by the limitations of your flesh. Instead, He stands patiently ready to minister to you, to work through those deficiencies, and to nourish you as you recover from them.’ Elijah – Faith and Fire, Priscilla Shirer, p. 193