Suffering with a hope

Do you remember the story of Elijah?  He was an amazing man of God.  He's the one that challenged the prophets of Baal to a test of who's god would hear and burn the sacrifice.  Of course the True God not only made fire consuming the entire alter, but also the dust and water surrounding it.  He then said that a heavy rain would come, even though it hadn't rained in years.  And so it happened.  He was a man of God.

And yet just after these two miracles happened he heard that Jezebel, a mere queen that didn't follow the True God, was planning to kill him within 24 hours.  So fear driven, he ran.  Out of reach of the nasty queen he begged God to take his life so it wouldn't be taken by her.

For a minute I'm going to put in some of my own thoughts here:  Could Jezebel really kill him?  Not likely he had just destroyed all of her prophets and requested heavy rain with God granting it.  3 1/2 years earlier with God's blessing he had called off all the rain and dew.  If God gave him that much power then why would he run from a mere person.  Not to mention that if you give people stuff they tend to side with the one who gave and he had just called rain back into there lives.  One more thing.  When he originally called off the rain, God told him to go and hide because he was in danger.  But this time he hid all on his own accord...

That brings me back to the topic at hand.  Him running away begging God to take his life.  Elijah was discouraged, but still has a Hope.  He of all people knew God to be the Creator, so he's begging his Hope to kill him because in his mind he's the last faithful one left, and things haven't changed a bit even with all the miracles God preformed through him, so he's thinkin' he's no better then any man that came before him; why not die?  The story goes on with God not only meeting him where he's at, the dumps, nurturing him, but also assuring him that he is not the only faithful one, but in fact there were 7,000 more like him.  It wasn't Elijah's time, he still had work to do.

This is how this all relates to me:  I am deeply depressed, my world much of the time is dark.  (I'm not begging God to kill me as Elijah was.)  I am as Elijah was, in conversation with my Maker.  As heavy and soundless this darkness is, I have a hope.  I have a Maker.  I have not forgotten Him.  My Maker, as He did with Elijah, is meeting me where I'm at, nurturing me, and encouraging me.  I still have work to do.  May God be glorified through my darkness.

At the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet came near and said, "O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, today let it be known that you are God in Israel and that I am Your servant and i have done all these thing at Your word.  Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that You, O LORD, are God, and that You have turned their heart back again.  then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

~ 1 Kings 18:36-38