Spiritual Renewal
Good Morning,
Most of us have had a moment or two when too many items were plugged in and popped the little circuit breaker button on the electric outlet. In some cases, we may have overloaded something in the breaker in the electrical box outside. Circuit breakers are made to carry only a certain amount of electricity. Plugging in one or more items accumulate and eventually come to a point at which it becomes dangerous, or could perhaps cause a fire, so the circuit breaker simply switches off.
In 1 Kings 19, we find Elijah with his “circuit breaker about to pop.” The weight of working in the ministry, surviving famine and drought, living from a little brook and some meat brought by ravens, and being fed some bread and water by a widow and her son, had accumulated. In chapter 18, Elijah faced the prophets of Baal. The story is not only dramatic and high stress, but ends with killing hundreds of false profits. Elijah then retreated to a mountain top and prayed until God gave rain.
Of course, God was in charge, and Elijah was certainly safe in the hands of his Heavenly Father, but sometimes the weight feels like the electric current when the breaker is about to pop. Notice Elijah‘s prayer:
1 Kings 19:4 “But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.”
No matter how good of a Christian you are, you are human, you are flesh, and the weight can become overwhelming.
Our mistake may be that we try to simply work hard harder and longer to conquer our problems in the flesh – which does not work!
Here are a few suggestions, some biological and some spiritual, for when you have reached the amperage limit of your breaker.
1. Spend more time with God.
Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
2. Eat more carefully. In the story of Elijah, the angel of the Lord brought food that sustained him for forty days. (1 Kings 19:8)
3. Go outside, get in the sun and the fresh air, and get some exercise.
4. Don’t quit! This is simply my opinion on the story of Elijah, he was so worn out that he went to God and God gave him direction to find a replacement. I think he quit too soon. I could be wrong, but I do know that I have watched Christians quit church, quit on their spouse, quit on their job, and quit on their ministry. Quitting and running to hide seems to be an easy way out. Even if I am wrong about the story of Elijah, I am not wrong in what I have seen in the lives of Christians. Grit your teeth, stay close to God, diligently practice one through three above, and you will find refreshment and renewal.
Luke 9:62 “And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
Don’t Quit!
Pastor