Props to the Encouragers!
5 min read
8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the LORD came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
— 1 Kings 19:8-9
Horeb is also called Mt. Sinai. It is where Moses received the ten commandments from God.
Why was Elijah there? He had just defeated 450 prophets of Baal and 450 prophets of Asherah in the face-off at Mt. Carmel. Then he prayed for rain to end the drought that had devastated their country, and the rain came. But when Jezebel threatened his life for killing her prophets, Elijah became seized with fear and ran away to Mt. Horeb.
Obviously, God knew why Elijah was there. God was not asking Elijah why he was there. He was asking Elijah how he could run away in fear after all that God had done for him and through him.
This story of the prophet Elijah has always fascinated me. Even though God had used Elijah, among other things, to raise a child from death to life and then to manifest His power to defeat the prophets of Baal and Asherah, Elijah ran away like a frightened child from Jezebel and abandoned his calling.
And he could have run away to anywhere, but he ran to Horeb to “have a meeting” with God to basically submit his resignation. He was done as a prophet.
This story of Elijah fascinates me because if someone like Elijah can get discouraged to the point of wanting to quit his calling, then someone like me can get discouraged too. Not that it’s OK to get discouraged to the point of wanting to abandon God’s calling for my life.
I have some pastor friends who have led thriving ministries—at least from a worldly perspective. But they have all been discouraged to the point of wanting to quit the ministry. And some of them have.
This is why I am so thankful for our Canvas family. Yes, every church community has its share of EGRs (extra grace required people). And I know that sometimes I may be that EGR to someone else. But our community really has an abundance of people who take the time and effort to encourage me. Maybe more than anything else, apart from my family, I thank God for those encouragers in my life the most.
And I say this knowing that some people will think that I am saying this to fish for encouragement from people. And, who knows, maybe I am. But you know what? I’m going to say it anyway. People who are going to encourage me, already encourage me.
Father, I give You thanks for all the encouragers who are in this Canvas family. I pray also that You would make me and encourager to them—and not only to them, but to the discouragers, as well. And if I should ever get discouraged, I pray that You would encourage me with Your Spirit because of the joy that is before me. In Jesus’s name. Amen.