Failing Faith 2 // Blessed

Intro/Last Week

• Finding Faith book
• Author came to realize his faith was based on comfort and control
• God is not a tool to be used, but a giver of grace to be trusted

Message 2 – Blessed

• All too often we think about blessings as goodies
• We know from Jesus’ Beatitudes that blessings help us live joyful lives in the face of adversity because God is with us

Read 1 Kings 19:9b-15, 18 (NLT) | [Elijah] came to a cave, where he spent the night…the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” ¹⁰ 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.” ¹¹ “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. ¹² 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. ¹³ When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” ¹⁴ He replied again, “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.” ¹⁵ Then the Lord told him, “Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. ¹⁸ …I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!”

Sometimes our circumstances tempt us to quit

• Elijah was on the run and wanted God to end it all
  • Elijah witnessed God do miracles
  • Jezebel wanted Elijah dead
  • Elijah went on the run
• Read Matthew 10:21-23 (MSG) | When people realize it is the living God you are presenting and not some idol that makes them feel good, they are going to turn on you, even people in your own family. There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate! But don’t quit. Don’t cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. It is not success you are after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you’ve run out of options, the Son of Man will have arrived.

God does not always operate in the realm of the spectacular

• God ministered to Elijah to help him recover
  • God provided time and space to rest and recover his emotional strength
  • God provided food to help Elijah recover his physical strength
  • God whispered to help Elijah recover his spiritual strength
  • Note: proximity
• Read Romans 12:1 (MSG) | So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.

Don’t believe the lie that you must face your problems alone

• Elijah feared no one else cared about God, but the Lord told him there were 7,000 waiting to be led
  • We do not have to face our problems alone.
  • God cared for Elijah so he could care for the remnant
• Read 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (MSG) | All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.

Reflection Questions

1. When do you seem to misunderstand the nature of God’s blessing?
2. Are you tempted to give up when the going gets tough? What can you learn from the ministry of Elijah and God’s ministering to Elijah?
3. What are three of the ways God ministered to Elijah to help him recover? How have you experienced similar recovery from the crises you face?
4. We often think God only works in the spectacular. Sometimes God prefers to work in the ordinary to do something extraordinary. When have you witnessed this in your own life? What do we tend to miss if we’re only seeking the spectacular?
5. The devil wants to try and deceive you into thinking you’re all alone. It seems to be working right now as loneliness is an epidemic. How has God shown up and shown out for you? Who has God brought alongside you to prove you are not alone? To whom might God want to lead you alongside now?