It was one of those weeks. The man had stood up for his faith while everyone around him believed in other gods. He had prayed and seen God move powerfully. But then his life was threatened, so in fear and exhaustion he fled.
Elijah was running on empty. He may have defeated the prophets of Baal yet he desperately needed a fresh insight of God. In 1 Kings 19:11-12, we read that God revealed himself not in the earthquake or the fire but in the 'still small voice.' Elijah had seen God's power in the dramatic moment on Mount Carmel, now God reveals himself in the stillness of Mount Sinai. God shows Elijah that he can use him in the limelight but also in the quiet. God's mission does not have one dimension. Elijah had to know his God and go where God led, not relying on his own strength.
"We need to reflect on the God we serve and allow him to shape our actions"
This moment in Elijah's life begs questions for each of us. We may be working in an office, hosting a radio show, comforting the dying, planting churches, travelling for business or working in a refugee camp - wherever we are, for our faith to stay vibrant we need to reflect on the God we serve and allow him to shape our actions.
Have we become so focussed on doing things for God that we have stopped allowing God to reveal himself to us?
For some reason, when Elijah hears that Jezebel wants him dead he loses sight of the God who protected him on Mount Carmel and runs in fear. When life gets difficult, there is the challenge for us to trust in the God who has already done so much in our lives rather than panic and depend on our own resources to get us through. Are we currently running on empty?
Have we focussed too much on one aspect of God that we have lost sight of other aspects of his character?
Elijah had seen God's power but needed to be reminded of his gentleness. Have we focussed too much on one aspect of the Godhead? What do we learn from the obedience of Christ to do his Father's will? Or from the Holy Spirit that will remind us of the things of Christ? Is our understanding of God hazy - do we want to discover more?
Are we being shaped by the God of mission?
Meeting with God meant that Elijah heard the challenge of God for the next stage of his ministry. In our mission activity, it can be tempting to continue doing things because we have always done it this way rather than taking time to hear whether God is seeking to redirect our steps. If we took time both in God's presence and in reflecting on who he is - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - what parts of the activity that we currently do would end?
If this is something that you would like to engage in with others, consider coming to this year's Global Connections conference from 6-8 December at The Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick, UK. The theme is Running on empty? Are we being shaped by the God of mission? We will be exploring this question through Bible readings, plenary sessions, prayer rooms and seminars. Speakers include Rose Dowsett (missiologist and OMF missionary), Clive Calver (church leader and former General Secretary of the UK Evangelical Alliance), Kang-San Tan (lecturer at Redcliffe College, UK) and Nims Obunge (church leader).
For more information on the 'Running on Empty?' conference, go to www.globalconnections.co.uk/conference2006
