Our Reserved Blessing

“He [Elijah] went on a day’s journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. He said, ‘I have had enough! LORD, take my life…’” 1 Kings 19:4

After coming off one of the most successful spiritual experiences Elijah had ever had, he found himself on the run from Queen Jezebel who wanted to take his life. God instructed Elijah to kill all the prophets of Baal which made him a target for the Queen. Elijah found himself in the wilderness frightened, exhausted, and depleted. It is astonishing to me that one who had the faith to move mountains also was the one who asked God to take his life all within a day. Before we judge him, we must remember that from the beginning of time all of humanity has its breaking point.

There have been 3 separate seasons in my life when I very well qualified for being at my breaking point… when my emotions screamed louder than my faith…when my physical body didn’t operate like a temple of God. But in retrospect I know that God surrounded me with the same blessing with whom He surrounded Elijah… ‘Then the LORD said to him, Go, return on your way…I have reserved seven thousand in Israel…’ 1 Kings 19:18. Before Elijah experienced one moment of exhaustion…one ounce of fear…one day of despair, God had already put people in place to help him…to encourage him…to sustain him.

Who are the people God has reserved for you to help you through a tough and troubling time? Are you reaching out to those who can remind you that God has not left you? God heals many hearts through those men and women who seem to be on the peripheral of our lives. They provide a million different moments that encourage the soul…that feeds the spirit…that fulfills the loneliness.

Reach out to those who are reaching out to you. They are divinely ordained and assigned to walk you through these times of devastation and discouragement. God does some of His best work through those who have hearts to serve others.