Scripture:
“Then Elijah said to all the people, ‘Come here to me.’ They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, ‘Your name shall be Israel.’ With the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs of seed. He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, ‘Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.’
‘Do it again,’ he said, and they did it again.
‘Do it a third time,’ he ordered, and they did it the third time. The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench. At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: ‘Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.’
Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.” 1 Kings 18:30-38 (NIV)
Perspective:
Elijah had challenged the false prophets of Baal to a showdown on Mount Carmel. They were tasked with calling fire down on a sacrifice. They chanted, cut themselves, and prayed all day to Baal. When their time was up, Elijah took the stage. He laid out the offering on pieces of wood. Yet, instead of hoping that would be adequate, he did something unprecedented. He called for water to be poured on the altar. Then, he called for them to do it again. Wet wood is not how you start a fire. Elijah, though, was less concerned with how to start a fire, but more concerned with who could start a fire. He had unmatched, courageous faith to ask God to show himself powerful, even though Elijah intentionally made it more difficult for God to do it.
How big is your faith? Even when the odds are stacked against you, can you still believe God to show up? Elijah wasn’t afraid for the situation to become increasingly challenging. He had a moat with water floating around his sacrifice. He didn’t waver and didn’t back down. In our lives, its hard to take that stance in midst of challenges. Yet, unwavering faith looks at situations and believes that God will show up even if we have been flooded to capacity. It doesn’t back down when the stakes are high. Even when we are pelted with adversity, this type of faith keeps us standing. This unwavering faith is firmly planted in knowing who God is, but trusts God with how to work things out.
THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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About Hona Amer
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