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The Bible tells us the Angel of the Lord touched Elijah and told him to get up and eat. When Elijah looked around, he saw fresh baked bread on hot coals and a jar of water for him to drink. After he ate and drank, Elijah went to sleep. After a while, the Angel woke him and told him to eat. Elijah obeyed and ate again. He received so much strength—he was able to travel for 40 days and nights without anything else to eat or drink. He was led to the mountain of the Lord and it was there that God visited him. The Lord spoke encouragement to Elijah in an intimate whisper letting Elijah know he had not been forgotten and that he was not alone. God told Elijah He was not finished with him and gave him some assignments. One of the things he revealed to Elijah was that he was giving him a young man named Elisha to mentor. Elisha would become Elijah’s replacement as prophet.
Elijah wasn’t threatened by the idea that his successor had been chosen. He didn’t go further into depression because now he saw the end of his ministry coming. He found strength and encouragement to move forward—knowing God had trusted him to prepare someone else to carry on His work. Elijah delighted in the fact that he was going to have a partner to work with and that God was giving him the opportunity to finish with dignity rather than defeat.
This story is a beautiful example of how we can approach God with honesty when the battle has become too hard for us. In ‘well doing’—Elijah had become ‘worn out’. When he told God exactly how he felt—God was compassionate. The Lord did practical things to strengthen Elijah and drew him into a place of closer fellowship with Him. He provided Elijah with a successor. Elijah didn’t have a son or a family of his own that we know of. But, God furnished him with an ‘heir’ in Elisha…which gave Elijah the reason he needed to press on.
Never forget the way God loves those who are of a broken and contrite spirit. Keep remembering how His heart is moved toward those who have no power of their own. A person who is ‘empty’—is someone who is capable of being ‘filled’ by the Holy Spirit. Anyone who still has some strength of their own can’t be completely empowered by God to ‘maximum capacity’. So, empty and weak are good—in God’s sight. If you’re at the end of your rope—let go. As you’re free-falling, God will catch you and give you everything you need to finish well.
Declaration: I will find new strength in the precious Word of God. I will learn from the examples written long ago—that God loves me and will always meet my needs. He will make a way for me to finish well—if I am honest with Him.
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For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, https://www.youtube.com/user/NewStrengthMusic/playlists?sort=dd&view=1
All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee 2012. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog.