I know what you're thinking. Elijah was a great prophet of God. Why am I including him in my doubter series? Elijah is known for his many acts of faith, so why would I want to shed light on the negative? I want to show you that even great people of faith suffer from depression from time to time.
I am going to sum up the story of Elijah as quickly as possible, so keep in mind this is all a shortened version of his story.
We first meet Elijah in I Kings, Chapter 17. As someone who reads and writes fiction (I am well aware my strength as a writer is not in the form of blogs, but I do love to write novels), it seems strange that Elijah is suddenly on the scene as a major character with no former introduction. (Of course this is history & not fiction!) Nevertheless, Elijah appears before King Ahab and tells him there will be a drought in the land. Because the king is angry with Elijah for his prophecy, God tells Elijah to flee to the east and hide. God promises Elijah that He will send ravens to feed Elijah, and He does as He promises.
In the same chapter, God sends Elijah to a widow to take care of him. Because of the widow's willingness to serve, as long as Elijah stays with her and her son, she never runs out of oil or meal. While staying with the widow, her son dies, but Elijah prays and the son comes back to life.
That's a lot of miracles in one chapter. Still confused as to why I am including Elijah in my doubter series?
In Chapter 18, Elijah and King Ahab decide to have a contest to prove which of them is serving the real God. They both set up altars to see which God (or god) will send fire from heaven. I love this story! When Ahab calls upon Baal, there is no answer.
So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.
And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.” So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them. And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention. I Kings 18:26-28
Elijah has his opposition douse his altar with water three times.
And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”
Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!” I Kings 18:36-38
Because the people have repented and turned back to the True God, rain comes back to the land.
In Chapter 19, Elijah must flee for his life. Queen Jezebel wants to kill Elijah because he killed the prophets of Baal.
This small section of Elijah's life is why I have included him in this series. I realize it may seem like the stretch of an over-active imagination to say Elijah was depressed, discouraged, and losing faith at this point. But we do indeed see Elijah in despair.
You cannot blame him for feeling discouraged and weary from the stress of having to flee for his life. When he is resting after his escape, he prays for God to allow him to die. In I Kings 19:4, he even says, "It is enough; now Lord take away my life," which could mean, he's had enough. Even though he has seen many miracles (probably even more than are recorded), he does not ask for one for himself. He is ready to give up and die. However, God still has a purpose for Elijah and sends an angel to feed him.
This is why I have chosen Elijah. Absolutely not to discredit such a great man of God, but rather to use his time of doubt to encourage you! If someone so full of faith and important as Elijah could feel so discouraged that he asks God to end his life, then how can someone who feels insignificant feel any better? Remember this: none of us are unimportant to God. It is true that only a few are called to be ministers or prophets, but that does not mean God loves you or me any less.
Think God has never sent angels to minister to you? Think again.
Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. Hebrews 13:2
For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you,’ Luke 4:10
The food given to Elijah by the angel sustains him for 40 days and nights. What happens next shows that God really wants to make it clear to Elijah how powerful He is. But more than that, He wants Elijah to be fully aware of God's great love for him. It is a sermon that is preached often because it is a wonderful reminder that we cannot always predict how God is going to choose to speak to us. We must always be ready and willing to listen.
And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
So he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts... I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”
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?”
And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts... I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”
Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria. Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place. I Kings 19:9-16
Notice that the Lord asks Elijah twice why he is hiding in the cave. This is just my interpretation (as are all my writings, of course), but it is almost as if God knows Elijah is feeling depressed. It's almost as if God is letting him know that He was not asking Elijah why he was hiding in the cave, but asking Elijah what he thought his reason for being alive was. After demonstrating His power, God gives Elijah instruction and tells him what his next assignment is. God makes it clear that Elijah still has a purpose and that God will be with him.
Elijah then meets Elisha and places his mantle (coat) upon him. In other words, God has chosen Elisha to take Elijah's place. Elijah's purpose is now to mentor Elisha as well as perform his regular "duties" as a prophet.
I am going to end with the story here. I think you pretty much understand where I am going with this theme by now.
It is perfectly normal for us to feel depressed or discouraged when things are going against us. It sometimes even feels like God himself is against us. This is something the devil would love for you to believe. But God does not fight against those that love, trust, and obey Him.
I do not believe Elijah was suicidal in the true sense of the word, but he was so distraught that he asked God to take his life. I am sure we have all wanted to give up in a dramatic way. We want physical and/or emotional pain to disappear because we cannot handle it any longer. We may not literally want or ask for death, but we are willing to give up the fight. We don't even bother to ask for help. We say as Elijah did, "It is enough." It is then that God may choose to speak to us with His still small voice. He may or may not grant a miracle, but he is willing to comfort and guide as we need.
"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
Elijah's time of doubt was a brief one, and his life continued forward as he again faithfully followed God's calling. So when you falter in your faith, pick yourself up and pick up where you left off. Or better yet, allow your faith to grow from there. You never know where God may want to use you and even be a teacher or encourager to someone else along the way.
Elijah mentored Elisha as God wanted, but eventually it was time to say good-bye. So I will end my blog here:
Now Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water; and it was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground.
And so it was, when they had crossed over, that Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?”
Elisha said, “Please let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.”
So he said, “You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so.” Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
And Elisha saw it, and he cried out, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” So he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes and tore them into two pieces. He also took up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan. Then he took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, and said, “Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” And when he also had struck the water, it was divided this way and that; and Elisha crossed over.
Now when the sons of the prophets who were from Jericho saw him, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” And they came to meet him, and bowed to the ground before him. II Kings 2:8-15
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