Teachings from Quest for God's Own Heart Ministry

Sermon:

The Valleys of Life

 1 Kings 19

Verse to Reflect On:

Isaiah 40:31:

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

Intro:

How is your life going right now? Are you experiencing a mountain top experience where everything seems to be going right? You know what I’m talking about. It seems that everything you touch turns to gold.  No matter what you do, everything works out perfectly: your spiritual life, your family life, your job, your social life. It’s all fantastic.

How about the valleys? Are you struggling right now? Does it seem that no matter what you do, things fall apart: your spiritual life, your family life, your work, your social life? You are living in the depths of the valley of life.

No matter who you are, you are going to face the valleys of life. Throughout our life, God gives us the joys of the mountaintop experience, but even the greatest of all the saints have hit the depths of the valley. Sometimes it is due to things that we have done. But other times we look up to the Father and cry out:

“What just happened? What in the world did I do? Things were just going great and now I look up and God, you seem so far away. I can’t even feel your presence. Where are you Father?”

You’re not alone. I know that those words ring hollow in your ears. At least it does in mine when I’m facing struggles in my life. But nonetheless, it is true. Everywhere you look, people are struggling, wondering how in the world they are going to make it through the day, forget tomorrow. How do we cope, how do we survive when we are going through the battles in our lives?

Not only has God promised that he will help us through our struggles, through the valleys that we face, but he has also shown us in his Word that even the great men and women of the Bible has also faced those struggles. They have also found themselves in the deepest of valleys wondering why they should even go on.

Today, I would like to share with you the story of Elijah the prophet. He was the prophet of Israel during the time of King Ahab and his wife, Queen Jezebel.

Elijah’s Story:

King Ahab and his wife Jezebel were horrible for the nation of Israel. They worshiped Baal and other gods and turned the people away from the True Living God. King Ahab caused more harm to the people of Israel than all kings before him (1 Kings 16:30, 33; 21:25-26). He absolutely hated the Prophet Elijah. Elijah was not politically correct. He made it very clear to King Ahab how God felt about their sins. The King and his wife Jezebel wanted nothing more than to see Elijah die.

Because of their sin, God sent Elijah to punish the people for turning their back on him. God commanded Elijah to pray that there would be no rain for several years. Can you imagine what was going through Elijah’s mind at that time?

Elijah: “You want me to do what?”

God: “I want you to pray that there would be no rain.”

Elijah: “You have got to be kidding me. King Ahab already wants me dead. The people of Israel are no big fans of mine as well. So let me get this right. You want me to go tell King Ahab (who hates me, by the way) that there will be no rain in Israel for several years.”

God: “Yes.”

Elijah: “Let me explain this one more time. King Ahab hates me and you want me to tell him that because of his sins, which, by the way, I have brought up to him, and is also why he hates me, there will be a drought in the land for several years.”

God: “Yes.”

Elijah: (Contemplating) “Well, God, if you say so, but WOW. He’s going to be ticked off.”

So Elijah went to King Ahab and declared:

"I serve the Lord, the God of Israel, As surely as the Lord lives, no rain or dew will fall during the next few years unless I command it."

During the drought, God sent Elijah to the brook Cherith where he sent ravens to provide bread and meat to Elijah and he drank from the brook. When the brook ran dry, God sent Elijah to a widow and her son, where God not only provided for Elijah but also made sure that the widow’s supplies never ran out.

King Ahab, was not doing well. The people of Israel were suffering the consequences of their sins. They didn’t have a brook to drink from nor did they have Ravens providing food for them.

I’m sure that the people of Israel wished they had elections like we do today. Surely King Ahab would have been voted out.

With no relief in sight, King Ahab sent scouts out to look for grass to feed the livestock. When the scouts came back King Ahab asked them:

“Hey, any grass?”

“None my King.”

“How about near the brooks?”

“No my King.”

“How about around the creeks?”

“No my King.”

“How about…”

“No.”

“Did you check…?”

“Yes my king, and no.”

“How about…”

“King Ahab, there is not one drop of water nor grass in all our land.”

(Gestures and then bows head)

Reality was finally setting in. King Ahab had nowhere else to turn. He had prayed to Baal with no results. He had searched the whole land for grass with no results. He had told the people of Israel that Baal would provide, yet with no results. After three years of no results, the people weren’t buying it. They turned on their king.

The Israelites had hit rock bottom. They had lost faith in their king. They were angry, frustrated and had lost hope. That is when God sent Elijah to speak to the king. God told Elijah:

“Go and meet King Ahab, and I will soon send rain."

Elijah, I’m sure, reluctantly traveled to see the king. Elijah told the king to gather all of the Israelites and the 450 prophets of Baal. Elijah told Ahab:

“Once and for all, the people of Israel will see that God is the true living God, and that Baal is nothing but a false prophet. Meet me at the top of Mount Carmel and I will prove to all the people that Yahweh is God.”

After gathering all the people; King Ahab, the Israelites, and the 450 prophets of Baal met Elijah on Mount Carmel, where Elijah’s mountaintop experience was about to begin.

Mount Carmel: 

1 Kings 18: 22-24:

“Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’

“But the people said nothing.’

“Then Elijah said to them, ‘I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us. Let Baal’s prophets choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.’

“Then all the people said, ‘What you say is good.’”

Elijah stood before all 450 prophets of Baal and told them to prepare for the sacrifice.

I imagine the conversation went something like this.

Elijah: Hey, prophets of Baal. It’s really this simple. Prepare the sacrifice and pray to Baal. The only rule. You can’t light a fire.

So the prophets of Baal prepared the sacrifice and began crying out to their god, praying that he would send fire from heaven to consume their sacrifice. They did this while dancing around from morning until noon. That’s when Elijah had some fun.

Elijah:

“Hey, shout louder. Maybe he is hard of hearing.”

“He might even be sitting on the toilet.”

“Have you thought about the fact that he might be traveling?”

“Come on guys. Your god might be asleep. Wake him up. Cry out louder.”

So the prophets of Baal shouted even louder. They cut themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed.

Elijah: Come on guys. Really? That’s got to hurt. Dance around some more. Shout louder. I’ve got time.

The prophets of Baal shouted even louder. They danced around shouting for Baal to answer them. They did this until the time of the evening sacrifice. But Baal never responded.

That’s when Elijah stood up:

Elijah: Come here. Yeah you. Stop what you’re doing. Come here.

Elijah built an altar with 12 stones for each tribe of Israel. Elijah also dug a trench around the altar. He prepared the sacrifice and put it on some wood that he placed on the altar.

Elijah: All right guys. Fill up four jars of water and pour it on my sacrifice.

The prophets of Baal filled up four jars of water and poured it on Elijah’s sacrifice.

Elijah: Do it again. I think you missed a spot.

So they did it again.

Elijah. One more time guys. Fill up the jars and pour it on my altar.

One more time they poured four jars of water on the sacrifice. By this time, the sacrifice and the altar were soaked. They poured so much water on the sacrifice that the water poured into the trench and filled it up.

Elijah: Okay guys. That’s enough.

Elijah stood before the sacrifice 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.’” (Verses 36-37)

Immediately fire came from Heaven consuming not only the sacrifice, but also the altar itself, stones, wood, the soil and also licked up the water that was in the trench.

When the people of Israel saw what had happened, they fell on their faces declaring:

“The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!”

When the prophets of Baal saw that Yahweh had sent fire from Heaven to burn Elijah’s sacrifice, they were like, man we are out of here, so they booked.

Elijah saw them running:

“Hey, you want a piece of this? Yeah, I didn’t think so.”

Elijah cried out:

“Seize the prophets and kill them all.”

Elijah had all 450 prophets of Baal sent down to the Kishon Valley and they killed them all by the sword.

Elijah told the king to eat and drink, for it is about to rain. So King Ahab ate and drank and waited for further instructions from God’s prophet.

Meanwhile, Elijah got back on the mountain and fell to his knees and prayed. He told his servant seven times to go and look toward the sea. The first six times, his servant came back and told Elijah that he saw nothing. But, on the seventh time, he saw a small cloud the size of a man’s hand rising from the sea.

When Elijah heard this, he told his servant to tell King Ahab, get your horses and chariots ready, for it is about to rain.

Can you imagine what was going through King Ahab’s mind at this time? He had just seen the most incredible miracle of God. Once and for all, he knew that Yahweh was the true and living God.

He couldn’t wait to get home to tell his wife Jezebel what had just happened. Surely she too would come to the conclusion that Yahweh was the true living God.

Wow, some guys never learn. Did King Ahab not know Jezebel? She is his wife. But, nonetheless, Ahab got on his chariot and went home as quickly as he could thinking that his wife was going to jump up for joy because Yahweh burned the sacrifice and Elijah killed all her prophets of Baal. What an idiot.

Elijah’s Valley:

What a victory Elijah had. His obedience to God produced an incredible mountaintop experience. He was probably the most confident, spirit filled man on earth.

The power of God came upon Elijah, and he got up and ran to King Ahab’s palace. King Ahab’s palace was about 14 miles away from Mount Carmel. Yet, not only did Elijah run the whole 14 miles, but he also beat King Ahab there. Wow. We could have used him during the Summer Olympics.

Elijah went to the king’s palace confident that his trials were over. No longer will King Ahab or his wife Jezebel want to see him dead. No longer will he have to hide from them. He was pumped. He was excited. What an incredible day.

Nothing could bring this man of God down, right?......well…..let’s read on:

1 Kings 19:1-2:

“Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May, the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them. (referring to the 450 prophets of Baal)”

Well…that wasn’t what Elijah expected to hear. He thought he was going to be welcomed into the palace. He thought maybe he will be seated at the king’s table as they celebrated the miracle God had given them. What a glorious day this will be.

Instead, Jezebel was ticked. She wanted to kill Elijah even more now. She made it very clear that within the next 24 hours, Elijah would be dead.

So what did Elijah do? He had just witnessed an incredible miracle. There is no way he could be frightened by anything anybody could say to him….Right?….well….look what happened:

1 Kings 19:3-5:

 “Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there while he went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.’ Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.”

Elijah went from being pumped up by an incredible mountaintop experience to crashing down to the deepest valley on earth. How could this happen? How could this man of God go from one extreme to another?

Has that ever happened to you? Have you ever gone from being on a spiritual high to being slammed down to the depths of the valley of life in one fair swoop? 

You just get so emotionally exhausted. You go from one extreme to another, and you just don’t know what hit you.

“What in the world just happened? How could this be? I was just experiencing the most incredible time with you God, and then BAM, slammed to the ground.”

That’s exactly where we find Elijah; deflated, defeated, confused, and exhausted. He wanted to die. But, God didn’t let that happen.

God loves us too much to walk away when things get tough. He will never let us down. He lovingly restored his child Elijah back to health. He sent an angel to Elijah to give him food and water. After eating and drinking, Elijah went back to sleep. The angel of the Lord came to Elijah once again and gave him food and water.

Elijah was strengthened by the food and water, and traveled 40 days and 40 nights to Horeb where God came to him in a gentle whisper.

God told Elijah:

“Go back the way you came, and go to Damascus and find Elisha. He will be my next prophet.”

God knew that his faithful servant Elijah was done. It was time for a new prophet.

In my opinion, Elijah was the coolest prophet of God. He did incredible things for Yahweh, but he also wore his emotions on his sleeve. That got the best of him in the end. It was time for him to go home. God was preparing Elijah for Heaven and Elisha for service.

After finding Elisha and training him for God’s service, Elijah knew that God was going to take him home, so Elijah asked Elisha if there was anything that he could do for him before he went to Heaven. Elisha said:

“Please let me have a double portion of your spirit.”

Elijah responded:

“If you see me lifted up to Heaven, you will have what you ask for.”

2 Kings 2:11-12:

“As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.”

Elijah’s trials were over. He completed his mission on earth and God took him home. It was Elisha’s turn.

We can learn a lot from the story of Elijah.

Our Valley: 

That is why God gave us these stories in the Bible. It is so that we may learn from them. Hopefully, we can learn from their victories and defeats.

God has shown us through His word that whether we are victorious and standing on the mountain top or we have fallen and are in the depths of the valley of life, He is always with us. He will never turn His back on us. Instead, He will lift us up and give us the path necessary to make our way back to Him on the mountaintop. That is his desire:

1 Corinthians 10:11-13:

“These things happened to them (referring to the prophets of the Old Testament) as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

What are you going through in your life? Are you stuck in the valley of life? Does it feel like there is no escape, no way out?

I’ve been there. More than I want to think about. When you hit rock bottom, it sometimes doesn’t seem that God cares at all. Instead, it feels like he has abandoned you, given up on you. When you are in the valley, sometimes you don’t even feel his presence. It’s frustrating. You just feel like giving up. Why go on?

You cry out to God, but you don’t hear him speak. In desperation you cry out:

“God where are you? I just don’t know what to do. Please help me. Help me know that you care. Help me know that you are here.”

That is exactly what happened to Elijah in our story.

Elijah wanted nothing more than to just die. He had given up. He felt that God had abandoned him even after his incredible victory on Mount Carmel. He felt that God was far away.

But God has promised that he will never leave us nor forsake us. So what do we do when we go through the struggles of life when we hit rock bottom when we find ourselves in the valley? What can we lean on, or should I ask, who should we lean on? We can lean on God himself and his Word.

When God seems so far away, remember this:

Zephaniah 3:17:

“The LORD, your God, is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."

Isaiah 41:10:

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

God is always with you. Even in your darkest hour. Even when you can’t feel his presence. He is the one holding you up. He is the one giving you strength. He is the one who will restore you:

1 Peter 5:10:

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”

God has given us all the promises and instructions that we need in his Word. But, I believe that sometimes, the reason why we have struggles, the reason why we can’t feel God’s presence is because we really don’t know who we are in Christ.

We know that if we have given our lives to Jesus, we are saved, and when we die, we will be with him for eternity, no more sorrows, and no more pain. That’s an incredible promise and it’s one I hold on too. But there has got to be more than that. If not, what is the purpose of us being here after we get saved? Why not just go to Heaven?

Of course, we are here to share God’s love to those around us. But there’s more to our life than just sharing his good news with the world. He wants us to have a relationship with him. He wants us to enjoy all the wonderful blessings that he has for us here in this life. God has given us a destiny that starts the very moment we get saved.

Our Destiny: 

We are more than just a creation to our Father. We are now his children.

Romans 8:16-17:

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”

2 Corinthians 6:17-18

 "’'I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,' says the Lord Almighty.’"

God calls us his children. We are not just another creation of his. We are his sons and daughters. He is our Father.

God not only sees us as his children, but he also made us a new creation. He took away the old person and made us brand new. We are no longer bound by sin. We can be victorious because of what Jesus has done.

2 Corinthians 5:17:

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here!”

Galatians 2:20:

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Jesus death and resurrection were not the end of the story. He proved his love for us by being a sacrifice for our sins. But he also wants to have a relationship with us. He wants to be with us for eternity.

John 14:3:

“[Jesus speaking] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”

Jesus’ desire is to be with us. He wants nothing more than to spend eternity with us. He no longer sees us as one of his creations. He sees us as a friend. He sees us as a child. He sees us as righteous in him.

2 Corinthians 5:21:

“God made [Jesus] who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

We are righteous in the Father’s eyes because of what Jesus did for us. We are no longer slaves to sin. We no longer have to feel guilty because of our sins. When we ask for forgiveness, God promised that he will forgive us. No strings attached. When we gave our life to Jesus, we became righteous in him.

So how do you see yourself today? Do you see yourself as just another human being struggling through life’s journey, or do you see yourself the way God sees you? He sees you as his child. He wants you to have joy in your life. He wants you to be set free from the bondage of sin. He wishes to have a relationship with you. He wants you to enjoy the destiny that he has given you.

Dennis Jernigan wrote a beautiful song called: “This is my Destiny.” In it, he shares with us how God sees us. It reads:

All I was I lay aside now dead to sin
To God alive! Born again into a new identity!
Once asleep to God in sin, now wakened by the blood and cleansed!

Born again to be who He called me to be!
All I have I lay aside, run the race to gain the prize
For the sake of knowing Jesus Christ in me!
I cannot yet fully see all I'm truly called to be,
Knowing Christ reveals my hope and destiny!

He calls me child! He calls me to his side eternally!
He calls what once was lost now found, once bound to sin - now free!
He calls me holy! Calls me righteous! By the blood redeemed!
He calls me over comer, crowned with victory!
This is my destiny!

What once bound me is no more! What was stolen is restored
By the resurrection power of my King!
What was old has been made new; lies and doubts replaced by truth!
What was silent now resounds, "I am redeemed!"

He calls me child! He calls me to his side eternally!
He calls what once was lost now found, once bound to sin - now free!
He calls me holy! Calls me righteous! By the blood redeemed!
He calls me over comer, crowned with victory!
This is my destiny!

He calls me servant, calls me warrior;

Calls me royalty!
He calls me resurrected one! He calls me His redeemed!
He calls me higher, calls me far beyond my wildest dream!
He calls my heart to come and be all he can see!
This is my destiny!

He calls me chosen! New creation! Trophy of his His grace!
He gives me strength to fight the fight and run to win the race!
He tells me he delights in me while singing over me,
Accepting me as His beloved bride-to-be! This is my destiny!

That is my destiny.

That is your destiny as well.

If you have given your life to Jesus Christ, then you are who he called you to be. Claim the truths of who God sees you to be. He chose you and he delights in you, no matter what you’ve done in your life because you are his child.

Now delight in his loving grace.

Delight in who you are in Christ.

Delight in your redemption.

Delight in your victories in Christ.

Delight in knowing that the Creator of the Universe sings over you.

Delight in the fact that you are crowned in victory.

Delight in the power of the Resurrected King.

Delight that he has chosen you.

Delight that you are the trophy of his grace.

Delight in your Destiny.

Your destiny is already here. Grab it by the horns and enjoy the wonderful ride that God has for you. Allow him to show you who you are in him and enjoy your destiny.