Sunday, July 27, 2014

Why are you there ?

1 Kings 19

And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks 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:
12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said,
 What doest thou here, Elijah?

   Knowing where you are going is not as important as knowing why you are there !
 Knowing why God has you at a place in your life is difficult. But, I would rather be at a place that I don't understand, than to get into a place  that God doesn't want me. Elijah knew why he was in that cave. He was hiding from his purpose and God calls him out and asks: Why ?. Fear, lack of trust, pride, self inflated views of ourselves, and a general lack of compassion are all reasons we can end up in places that can leave God asking us :  What are you doing there ?  Where as : Love , Joy, Peace, long suffering, humility, and self control may lead us to places we don't want to be, but are places God expects us to be.