It was a great summer of camps, but I am happy to be home. I was away for two full weeks, and that was a bit exhausting, esp. when I flew from San Jose, CA to Jacksonville, FL a week ago Sunday, then had to get up the next morning essentially 3 hours earlier and start the process over again. I even had a student come to me and ask how it was that I could keep up the energy those first couple of days. I told him that I am such an extrovert, and crowds really energize me, that the group of 16 students was enough to keep me going. But I would collapse when I got back to my host home.
I was able to keep up on my Bible reading in spite of my busyness. I have finished 2 Samuel and am about halfway through 1 Kings now. What really stood out to me was how just a small straying to the left or to the right of what God said has dire consequences. God had said that the Israelites were not to intermarry with the foreign women, but Solomon disobeyed this and it led to the divided kingdom. Jeroboam was told to follow God’s law even though he was the king of the northern 10 tribes. He was concerned the Israelites would end up going back to Judah by worshipping at the Tabernacle, so he set up false gads in Bethel and Dan. From that point on, every time Jeroboam is mentioned, it is said of him that he sinned and led Israel to sin.
A prophet of God went to Jeroboam and pronounced doom against him and his household. The prophet was told explicitly by God not to eat bread or drink water in that land, and to go back by another way. Another “prophet” lied and said that he had heard from God that he could come and eat with him. Then God spoke through the lying prophet concerning that disobedience. And the disobedient prophet was attacked and killed by a lion. When God speaks, He doesn’t change His mind.
And with the divided kingdom, Israel had separated from the covenant and went downhill rapidly. It was not long before we got Ahab and Jezebel. Judah was not much better, and when a king would stray from what God said, they would pay the price as well. In 1 Kings 17, Elijah comes on the scene. Read through these chapters and notice something. Elijah was very much dialed in on what God was saying. So much so that God would give him orders just as He wanted Elijah to act. Elijah comes to Ahab and Jezebel and announces there won’t be rain and then God tells him to leave and go to the brook Cherith. Elijah stays there until God tells him to go to Sidon. Then God tells Elijah to go confront Ahab, and to have him bring all of the prophets of Baal and Jezebel to Mt. Carmel. Elijah shows that the Lord, He is God through a big display of God’s power.
Everything is going well until they all get back to Jezreel. When Jezebel gets word on what happened, she sends Elijah a threatening letter saying if he doesn’t leave, she will kill him the next day. It is at this point that Elijah listens to someone other than God. He becomes afraid and runs for his life. God didn’t tell him to do this, Jezebel did. Elijah eventually gets to Mt Horeb and an angel comforts him, gives him something to eat and tells him to just rest. Then God asks Elijah why he was at Mt Horeb, almost as if to say, “I didn’t tell you to come here. In fact, I gave you no orders at all.”
One big thing we should all take from this story is that we need to pay attention even more to God when we are exhausted. Isn’t it when we are really tired that temptation rears its ugly head? We need to remember that these are all real people with real feelings and anxieties and limitations like us all. I am glad for these stories. But I also realize that if these pillars of faith go through these difficulties, how much more should I, as all of us, pay even closer attention to God, to the Holy Spirit who is in us. He will never leave us or forsake us.
Amen
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