Part 3: Elijah and the Still Small Voice
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
PART 3
1 Kings 19:9-19
The Backstory: 1 Kings 18
1. YOU ENCOUNTER GOD WHEN YOU REALIZE HE KNOWS WHAT YOU NEED.
“Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord’ he said. ‘Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.’” 1 Kings 19:3-4 (NLT)
“And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, ‘Arise and eat.’ And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again.” 1 Kings 19:5-6 (ESV)
“Then the angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.’ So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God.” 1 Kings 19:7-8 (NLT)
2. WHEN YOU ENCOUNTER GOD, HE REPLACES THE LIES WE TELL OURSELVES WITH HIS TRUTH.
“There he came to a cave, where he spent the night. But the Lord said to him, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’ Elijah replied, ‘I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with You, torn down Your altars, and killed every one of Your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.’” 1 Kings 19:9-10 (NLT)
3. YOU ENCOUNTER GOD WHEN YOU HAVE A LISTENING AND OBEDIENT HEART.
“‘Go out and stand before Me on the mountain,’ the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper.” 1 Kings 19:11-12 (NLT)
God gives you an assignment.
“Then the Lord told him, ‘Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram. … Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!” 1 Kings 19:15,18 (NLT)
To encounter God, seek Him with all your heart.
“You will seek Me and find Me, when you seek Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13 (ESV)
MY NEXT STEP TODAY IS:
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This Week’s Reading Plan:
YouVersion® Bible App Reading Plan: “How to Hear God's Voice” (5 Days)