Tag Archives: Elijah and the prophets of Baal

November 16, 2022 · 5:50 AM

Small Acts Of Faith

I ok an assessment at work several years ago. One of the things it told me was that I like big risk, big reward scenarios. The down side to that is that I leave a lot of low hanging fruit behind going after those situations. It’s a mentality that many of us have: go big or go home. When we think of doing things, we think of grand gestures like proposing on the Jumbotron at a game, but miss the little things like opening a door. When we think of any endeavor, we think of doing things that get noticed. Slow and steady wins the race can be a foreign concept. Success in our eyes often looks like being famous, being the lead person or being the boss. Being the person who does things behind the scene or garner little attention can feel like we’re failing, but the truth is greater success is found in the little things.

I often identify with Elijah. In 1 Kings 18, he brought all of Israel to Mount Carmel for a big showdown with the prophets of Baal to call down fire from heaven. When it was all over and the prophets were killed, Jezebel threatened his life. After running and meeting with God, he was sent to a small town. He was met at the gate by a widow picking up sticks to build a fire so she could have her last meal. When he said he was hungry and asked for her last meal, she offered it to him. It was her small act of faith that got blessed. Her flour and oil didn’t run out until the crops returned. Big acts of faith are great, but mostly God is looking for small acts that often go unnoticed.

Matthew 25:34-36 says, “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me’” (NLT). These small acts of faith went unnoticed even by themselves, but not to God. He loves to see us love others in the little things. It’s time we opened our eyes to what’s in front of us. Does someone need a little help? It could be Jesus in disguise. He gives us daily opportunities to share His love through small acts. Don’t miss them while you’re looking for the big ones.

Photo by Timur Weber:

An Elijah Moment

As I stood on top of Mount Carmel looking across the valley, I remembered the story of Elijah where the land hadn’t seen rain in three years. The now fertile valley was dry and bare then. King Ahab was looking for grass to save his horses from dying of starvation. Elijah, whom the king wanted dead, told him to gather all the prophets of Baal and to meet him on top of Mount Carmel. The prophets of Baal made an altar and so did Elijah. They were to pray and ask for fire to ignite the altar. The god who answered would be the real god. After the prophets of Baal had prayed all day with no fire, Elijah poured water on his altar three times then called down fire from Heaven. It consumed the altar from top to bottom drying up all the water as well.

In 1 Kings 18:21 Elijah addressed them, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” (NLT) When I read that, I can’t help but internalize it. Our lives are a constant battle between our flesh and our spirit. We waver between wanting to give into the desires of the flesh and doing what God requires. As long as we go between them, we are miserable as Paul described in Romans 7. Also, according to James 1:8, it also makes us unstable in all our ways. That’s not the way that God wants us to live. In order to live His way, we need to have an Elijah moment in our lives where we force ourselves to choose the way God wants us to live.

Colossians 3:5 says, “So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.” We need to put to death the things that we have put before God. Verse 10 tells us, “Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.” We all have this choice to make. Either we will continue to live unstable, idolatrous lives or we will put on the new nature that’s been given to us. It starts with calling down fire from Heaven into our lives consuming the things that are not of God. It’s a continuous process, but it starts with an Elijah moment.

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

An Elijah Moment

As I stood on top of Mount Carmel looking across the valley, I remembered the story of Elijah. The land hadn’t seen rain in three years. The now fertile valley was dry and bare. King Ahab was looking for grass to save his horses from dying of starvation. Elijah, whom the king wanted dead, told him to gather all the prophets of Baal and to meet him on top of Mount Carmel. The prophets of Baal made an altar and so did Elijah. They were to pray and ask for fire to ignite the altar. The god who answered would be the real god. After the prophets of Baal had prayed all day with no fire, Elijah poured water on his altar three times then called down fire from Heaven. It consumed the altar from top to bottom drying up all the water as well.

In 1 Kings 18:21 Elijah addressed them, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” (NLT) When I read that, I can’t help but internalize it. Our lives are a constant battle between our flesh and our spirit. We waver between wanted to give into the desires of the flesh and doing what God requires. As long as we go between them, we are miserable as Paul described in Romans 7. According to James 1:8, it also makes us unstable in all our ways. That’s not the way that God wants us to live. In order to live that way, we need to have an Elijah moment in our lives where we force ourselves to choose the way God wants us to live.

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