Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 19
And he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.” 1 Kings 19:14
Loneliness can be miserable. It hits all of us at one time or the other. For some people, it comes off and on, while for other people, it is an almost constant reality. The thing about loneliness is that you don’t have to be alone to feel lonely; you can feel lonely in a crowd. You can have lots of people around you and yet not feel their presence in your life.
Many factors contribute to making us feel lonely. Sometimes, we are the main causes of our loneliness; other times, circumstances around us make us feel lonely.
One of the causes of loneliness is opposition. When we face serious opposition in our lives, with people fighting us all around, we can feel alone. In crisis moments, we can feel alone.
Elijah, the prophet, faced such a moment in his life. God had used Elijah in an extraordinary way to bring Israel back to the Lord. In a momentous contest on Mount Carmel, Elijah, standing alone, defeated 450 prophets of Baal. God answered Elijah’s prayer with fire from Heaven. He also answered Elijah’s prayer with rain.
Before Elijah could sit to enjoy his victory, he had a threat on his life. And the threat came from a very powerful person – Jezebel, queen of Israel. That threat was so real to Elijah that he ran off and wished he were dead. At that moment in his life, nothing could cheer him up.
Elijah felt alone because there was no one he could count on in his moment of crisis. He had been a help to other people in their moments of crisis, but when his time came, he could not rely on anybody. That was the cause of his loneliness.
Are you where Elijah was? Do you feel alone in your struggles? The truth is that although Elijah felt alone, he was not alone. God was with him.
May the Lord surround you with His presence. Remember the promise of our Lord Jesus Christ, ‘I am with you, even to the end of the age’. That promise still stands today.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I know you are with me at all times. Let me sense your presence around me today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
