Have you ever felt like you were at your breaking point? Maybe nothing seems to be going the way you had hoped. Or maybe you’re doing everything you know to do but you still can’t seem to get ahead—you can’t seem to make any progress. Or maybe you’re just flat out exhausted. Exhausted from everyday responsibilities, exhausted from the state of the world, exhausted from difficult circumstances. If you find yourself feeling this way, you’re in need of refreshing.
And you’re not alone in feeling this way. You’re not alone in needing to be refreshed.
Like many others, the prophet Elijah also found himself at a breaking point.
And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.” And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “it is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” (1 Kings 19:1-4).
Before we continue learning more about Elijah’s experience, let’s gain some context.
Elijah was the prophet in Israel during the time of king Ahab’s reign. King Ahab was exceedingly wicked and his wife Jezebel even more so. They worshipped Baal and encouraged the Lord’s people to do so as well. Jezebel was so wicked, that she even had many, if not the majority, of the Lord’s prophets killed (1 Kings 18:4).
But the Lord is merciful, and He wanted to show the Israelites yet again that He alone is God. So He sent Elijah to do exactly that. In front of all of Israel, Elijah, one man, confronts and challenges 450 prophets of Baal. He basically tells the prophets to put a sacrifice on the altar and he’ll put a sacrifice on the altar, and whoever God answers by lighting the sacrifice with fire, is God.
To no surprise, Baal never responded to the cries and pleas of his prophets, but the Lord heard and responded to Elijah:
Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the brunt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. (1 Kings 18:38).
Not only did Elijah have victory in proving that the Lord is the one true living God, but he also had the 450 prophets of Baal seized and executed (v.40).
Elijah experienced a day of great victory, but he was worn out. He had been dealing with king Ahab and Jezebel’s wickedness and the Israelites disobedience to God, and it had depleted him (1 Kings 19:10).
But let’s continue and pick up where we left off.
Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again. And the angel of the Lord came back the second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.” So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. (1 Kings 19:5-8).
Let’s pause here.
God knows exactly how to refresh us and sustain us. As our Creator, He knows that we are both natural and spirit. And the truth is, Just like Elijah, sometimes we need refreshment in the natural. Like a meal, or some water, or a nap. Sometimes we even just need a good conversation with a friend or some time doing something fun that we really enjoy.
I’ve had a similar experience myself. While I wasn’t at my breaking point, I did find myself terribly frustrated.
I was sitting at my desk one afternoon, trying to write and I just couldn’t get anywhere. This went on for some time and I just continued to grow in frustration. Nothing of value was coming to my mind and anytime I did write something down I ended up deleting it because I just knew it wasn’t right. I was praying and asking the Holy Spirit to please help me, when I heard Him whisper in my spirit to stop and go eat. I then realized how late in the afternoon it was, and realized I hadn’t eaten much of anything that day. I stopped and ate a meal and got back to my writing, and the words just flowed out of me.
God knew that I just needed natural refreshment to get my head back in the game. And He knew that was what Elijah needed as well.
Let’s finish reading about Elijah’s experience. We jump back in a few verses down, after God asks Elijah, “What is he doing there?” And Elijah responds as to why he is feeling so terrible. Here is how God responds back to him:
Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:11-13).
I love these verses because they show so clearly that God cares about both are natural well-being and our spiritual well-being.
First, He addressed the natural and gave Elijah food to eat. Then He addressed the spiritual by reminding Elijah who He is through a show of His great power—and then He spoke a personal word to Him.
One would think that after Elijah’s great day of victory against the prophets of Baal, that the last thing he would need was a demonstration of God’s power and a personal word from Him. But God knew that was exactly what He needed.
In the verses that follow, God gives Elijah a personal word on how to proceed forward in his life.
Depletion can be crippling. It can cause you to feel confused and doubtful about how to move forward. But God always knows the way forward and He will always leads you to the right path.
We see God’s greatness and power at work all around us. And we all have access to God’s written Word. But sometimes, we need a personal demonstration of His power in our own lives, and sometimes we need a personal Word from Him about our own lives and our own circumstances.
Elijah was no stranger to who God is and what He is capable of, but in his time of physical, mental, and emotional defeat, he simply needed to be in God’s presence and hear His voice, not for the children of Israel, but for himself.
When you feel depleted, exhausted, frustrated, at the end of your rope, you need to run to your Heavenly Father. He knows how to refresh you. He knows how to revive your spirit. He knows how to restore your hope. He knows exactly what you need and He is more than capable of providing it for you and leading you in the right way to go.
Sometimes we need a meal and something to drink. But sometimes we need to sit quietly in God’s presence or spend time reading His word.
And you do not need to wait until you are at your breaking point like Elijah did. The moment you begin to feel overwhelmed, cry out to the Lord and receive His refreshment.
Remember what the Lord did for Elijah and remember the words of Jesus:
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30).
Take your burdens before the Lord today, and like Elijah, receive rest for your weary soul.
Check out one of our previous posts and learn about one obedient act that leads to victory!
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