Elijah Fed by the Ravens II

I Kings 17:1-6

The land was in a great drought, due to the Israelites’ stubborn insistence on seeing Baal the god of fertility promoted by King Ahab. The Lord pushed His judgment more to the point by isolating them from God’s Word and blessings through the prophet Elijah by having him hide in the Kerith Ravine east of the Jordan. The Lord then let Elijah know that he could drink from the brook and that ravens would bring him bread and meat in the morning and evening.

That Elijah was sustained apart from living among his own people demonstrated that the Word of God was not dependent on the people but the people were dependent on the Word of God.

I’ve been amazed to see over the years how God often works in ways completely off my radar screen. How He always has a card in His deck we know nothing about. To steal a book title from C.S. Lewis, I have been “Surprised by Joy” in the most original awe-inspiring manner and I don’t have to look close to see God’s fingerprints all over it. It’s the hardest thing to let God be Himself in our lives, to not reduce Him to something more manageable, more tame. Put your seatbelt on if you let Him have His way with you, no strings attached. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)