Elijah & the Ravens

One of my favorite flannelgraph stories growing up was about Elijah and those ravens who came and fed him down by a brook.  In 1 Kings 17, Elijah told King Ahab that it wasn't going to rain again until he said so.  Basically, Ahab was flat out evil, and he made God pretty angry.  So God sent Elijah to tell Ahab that there wouldn't be any rain, and that would ultimately result in a famine.  Now if you're an evil king, do you think you'd be too fond of some prophet coming to tell you that?  And if you're Elijah and you'd have to deliver that kind of message, I'm thinking you'd be freaking out a little.  God asked Elijah to risk his life and trust Him.

So I'm reading this again. I've freaked out over some pretty little things that God has asked me to do...both in the past and in the present.  Things that pale in comparison to what God asked of Elijah, but they still freak me out.  He's asked me to make some pretty significant changes.  He's asked me to surrender my dreams and my desires.  He's asked me to let go and stop trying to control.  He's asked me to step out and trust Him. To trust His timing...even when it threatens everything I hold dear. 

I love reading how God protects Elijah though.  He already has a plan in place to take care of Elijah.  He tells Elijah to deliver His message, and then tells him to get the heck out of Dodge!  God takes it to the next level and provides for Elijah's needs.  No rain means no water and eventually no food.  But God uses ravens to bring him bread and meat twice a day, and he had water from the brook that God told him to hide out next to. 

As I've actually taken those steps of faith and followed through on things that I believe God has asked me to do, I, too, have seen time and time again how God has provided every step of the way.  He already has a plan in place to take care of me.  It might not make sense at the time, but God somehow always provides for my needs right in the middle of it all.  It seems like a pretty simple lesson, but it's one that I need to be reminded of over and over and over again. 

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 

I'm going to take it one verse further though.  What happens when 1 Kings 17:7 hits us?

"Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land."

We always talk about how God provides, and don't get me wrong...He does.  You've given up so much, but you've also been able to see His hand, and you feel like you're doing ok even when it's not easy.  But then there are those times when you feel like you've truly listened to God, and you've been following Him even when it's been pretty difficult, but all of a sudden it feels like the rug has been ripped out from under you.  It doesn't make sense.  The brook dries up.  You're tempted to question if God is actually still providing.  I love what Perry Noble had to say about this at Catalyst last year...