I Am Only Answering Your Prayer Part 1

This is the second chapter in the book about the prayer life of Elijah.

A friend of mine told me that one time she asked God to give her more patience. She found herself getting very frustrated with people and things that slowed her down in her service for God. So she prayed that God would give her patience. God answered that prayer but not in the way she expected. Instead of changing the people who caused her anxiety and removing the circumstances that made her impatient God did the opposite. He brought more people into her life that demanded her time. The circumstances did not improve but actually became worse. She realized then that she could not deal with this on her own so she took it to God asking Him why He didn’t answer her prayer. The Lord gently nudged her and told her that He was answering her prayer and then she realized that she had more patience with people and circumstances.

“Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.” 1 Kings 17:7 (NIV)

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV).

Have you ever wondered what went through Elijah’s mind as he sat by the brook? Each day as he woke from his sleep he would go down to the brook to get refreshed and each day the brook became smaller and smaller until it eventually dried up completely.

How long did he stay there? We don’t know but it must have been extremely hard on Elijah. After all, he was a man of action and now he was called to do nothing. I am sure he must have thought that there was a lot more that he could be doing. Maybe he should have held revival meetings for the people and then they would have turned their hearts back to God. I believe that sitting by the drying brook was harder for Elijah than confronting the king of Israel. I have wondered if his spirits sagged while he watched the stream dry up.

Continued tomorrow LW