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"So he went and did according to the word of the LORD, for he went and stayed by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. And it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land."
(1 Kings 17:5, 7)
Elijah was a mighty prophet and man of God. He encountered his highs and lows while serving the LORD and fulfilling his role as a representative for God during a low point in Israel's history. After Elijah announced to evil King Ahab that there would be a drought, he fled into hiding at the Brook Cherith. Did God know in advance that this brook would dry up and displace His prophet? Yes; God knows everything, and at times He leads us to places where we encounter painful and difficult circumstances.
God had another plan for Elijah. He told His prophet to rise and go on another assignment. In 1 Kings 17:8-9 we read, "Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 'Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.'" When Elijah met the widow, she was down to her last meal. She and her son would soon die of starvation due to the severe famine most likely caused by the lack of rain. This lady and her son needed a miracle, and God sent one in the person of Elijah. It is a remarkable and miraculous story of how God provided for them so that they would not perish. The flour and oil lasted much longer than it should have. When her son died, God raised him from the dead and used Elijah as His instrument to bring it about. I imagine this lady felt like she could endure no more. She too, like Elijah (and everyone who has ever lived), experienced the harsh realities of life in a fallen world.
I had a good friend in college named Lisa who suffered from cerebral palsy. She was a vibrant Christian lady who always had a smile on her face and joy in her heart. She told me one time how someone had told her that she did not have enough faith in God, and that is why she was not healed. It broke her heart to hear people tell her such lies. She had faith, she loved Jesus, but God did not heal her, at least not in this life. Her testimony is the same as so many today. At no fault of their own, they walk through deep valleys and suffer.
Can you relate? Is the spring you once relied upon no longer flowing with water? Do you feel abandoned? Has life beat you down to the point that you feel like giving up? I am so sorry for your pain. Words will not help you very much at this point in your pain. I pray that God gives you supernatural peace and patience and that you would lean into Him and not turn away. He is at work. God has a plan. You will eventually see it and understand.
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