In 1 Kings 17:1-7 the Lord instructs Elijah to go east, drink from a brook, and eat what the ravens bring because He has instructed them to bring Elijah food. Elijah obeys the Lord by doing what the Lord had instructed him to do, but after a while, the brook dried up and there was no rainfall anywhere in the land. How many of you have experienced your brook running dry? A place in your life where you felt like you have hit rock-bottom.
I want every listener who is currently in that place, to know that I too, have been there. After walking away from a job that God revealed would not be a good fit for me, months went by without me having a job. One day, I remember casually standing up from the couch with one of my family members, walking to the bathroom and closing the door. The bathroom was the only place where I had complete privacy. I sat down on the floor to finish reading the email about another job rejection and I couldn't help but begin to weep. After being rejected from over 100 jobs, this particular rejection hit home hard. It made me feel as though I was so parched that exhaustion began to latch on to me like a leech depleting me of my faith and energy at the same time. My savings had been depleted, I knew that the money from my link card wouldn’t last always and that it would soon come to a swift end, my uncomfortable living situation made my plight of life feel so top-heavy that for the first time in my life, I was literally stuck to the floor. I tried to get up, brushing this rejection off but I couldn’t move. It was as if my body had reached this state of complete paralyzation.
I want every listener who is currently in that place, to know that I too, have been there. After walking away from a job that God revealed would not be a good fit for me, months went by without me having a job. One day, I remember casually standing up from the couch with one of my family members, walking to the bathroom and closing the door. The bathroom was the only place where I had complete privacy. I sat down on the floor to finish reading the email about another job rejection and I couldn't help but begin to weep. After being rejected from over 100 jobs, this particular rejection hit home hard. It made me feel as though I was so parched that exhaustion began to latch on to me like a leech depleting me of my faith and energy at the same time. My savings had been depleted, I knew that the money from my link card wouldn’t last always and that it would soon come to a swift end, my uncomfortable living situation made my plight of life feel so top-heavy that for the first time in my life, I was literally stuck to the floor. I tried to get up, brushing this rejection off but I couldn’t move. It was as if my body had reached this state of complete paralyzation.
As the tears profusely rushed down my cheeks, I remember asking God why something like this would be happening to me so unexpectedly. I felt like I had done my best to follow God’s instructions but I couldn’t wrap my mind around why he would leave me feeling so deserted in the middle of a battle. I was momentarily convinced that God had completely forgotten about me and that the weight of life had finally caught up to me just to reveal it.
This month, I believe that God wants everyone reading this blog to know that even when the brook runs dry, He has a plan that has already been set in motion for you. Whether you have lost a loved one, lost a job, lost your home, experienced turmoil in your relationships, experienced financial hardships, or just straight up been having a hard-knock-life, know that the plight reveals God’s light.
This month, I believe that God wants everyone reading this blog to know that even when the brook runs dry, He has a plan that has already been set in motion for you. Whether you have lost a loved one, lost a job, lost your home, experienced turmoil in your relationships, experienced financial hardships, or just straight up been having a hard-knock-life, know that the plight reveals God’s light.
As the story of Elijah continues to unfold, the bible tells us that the word of the Lord came to Ellijah saying, 9 “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” 10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” 11 As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.” 12 “As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.”13 Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” 15 She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. 16 For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.
There was something about Elijah’s ability to endure and push past his dry brook that revealed God’s light and showed him a new way. In the same way, there was something down on the inside of me that had to push past my feelings in that moment as I sat on the floor that revealed God’s light. The day I got up from that bathroom floor was the day that I decided to change my response to my situation. It’s the day that I surrendered everything over to God. My pain, my worry, my plans, my finances, my heart, my mind, etc. This month, be intentional about the way in which you respond to your dry brook. Allow God to constantly transform and renew you by changing the way you think so that you will learn to know His will for you which is good, pleasing, and perfect (Romans 12:2 NLT).
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
We want to take a moment to say thank you in the middle of this pandemic. Thank you for making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, thank you for always having a divine plan set in motion for us, even when we cannot see it. This month, instead of getting stuck in what things may look like, we pray that you help us to filter our eye gates so that we may walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV). We pray for your gentle encouragement, abundant provision, and your apprehensible words of confirmation. Help us to release our situations into your hands so that we may dream big, think big, pray big, expect big, and believe big no matter what our reality may be. May we navigate through this month understanding that the plight reveals your light which means that there is always fresh fruit, clear direction and indomitable protection, even in my dry brook. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Heavenly Father,
We want to take a moment to say thank you in the middle of this pandemic. Thank you for making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, thank you for always having a divine plan set in motion for us, even when we cannot see it. This month, instead of getting stuck in what things may look like, we pray that you help us to filter our eye gates so that we may walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV). We pray for your gentle encouragement, abundant provision, and your apprehensible words of confirmation. Help us to release our situations into your hands so that we may dream big, think big, pray big, expect big, and believe big no matter what our reality may be. May we navigate through this month understanding that the plight reveals your light which means that there is always fresh fruit, clear direction and indomitable protection, even in my dry brook. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Scriptures to Feed Yourself & Reflect On:
1 Kings 17:1-16 NIV
Romans 12:2 NLT
2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV
1 Kings 17:1-16 NIV
Romans 12:2 NLT
2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV