I preached about Elijah from 1 Kings 18 & 19 last night, so he is still fresh on my mind today. It is hard for me to put so much work in preparing a sermon, and then totally let it go once it is finished. They tend to linger with me a few days until I get really heavily involved in preparing the next one. So I have an Elijah hangover today in that regard.
In 1 Kings 18 & 19 Elijah takes on the 450 prophets of Baal. He throws down a challenge to them.
1 Kings 18:23-24 "Now let them give us two oxen; and let them choose one ox for themselves and cut it up, and place it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other ox, and lay it on the wood, and I will not put a fire under it. "Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, He is God." And all the people answered and said, "That is a good idea."
As the story goes, the prophets of Baal call on the name of their god. They get no answer. Then Elijah calls on the name of the Lord.
1 Kings 18:38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
Elijah is used by the Lord to show forth HIS great power. Elijah calls down fire from heaven and has the prophets of Baal put to death. What a great spiritual victory! You would expect that Elijah might be really super encouraged by the fact that the Lord used him in such a great way and that he might be able to live off the spiritual momentum of that event for a long time. Yet just as soon as Jezebel finds out what has happened she threatens Elijah. Elijah, the brave man of God, runs and hides. He becomes so depressed that he asks the Lord to kill him.
What does this little story teach us? Well lots of things. Among them that if a guy like Elijah who was used so powerfully by God can get depressed to the point that he no longer wants to live, then it can happen to any of us. Notice what Elijah does in 1 Kings 19:5. He goes to sleep. Then an angel of the Lord was sent to minister to Elijah. How does the angel minister to him? The angel gives Elijah something to eat and drink then lets Elijah sleep some more.
Not always, but sometimes depression is brought about by too much activity. That could possibly be what is going on with Elijah in this story. I suggest this as a possibility because the treatment for the depression as administered by the angel does not involve counseling or any type of pep talk....the remedy is food and sleep.
I do not mean to over simplify a debilitating condition like depression. For a man in my position to do so would be irresponsible and reckless. So please do not think I am suggesting in all cases that the only thing depressed people need to do is eat a meal and take a nap and all will be better. I am not suggesting that at all, but sometimes when we get temporarily depressed it is because of over activity.
Are you getting enough rest or are you burning the candle at both ends? It will catch up with you eventually.
Jesus needed down time....so do you.
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