From the Archive: A Still Small Voice
But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for himself that he might die . . . And, behold, the Lord passed by and a great and strong wind rent the mountains . . . but the Lord was not in the wind; after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.
1 Kings 19:4, 11-12
This scripture shows how Elijah sunk to the depths of despair because Jezebel threatened his life. Life had become unbearable and seemingly worthless, so he asked God to let him die. But God wasn’t finished with Elijah. While hiding in a cave, God sent an angel to feed and strengthen Elijah in his hour of need.
Through all of this God waited until Elijah was ready to listen to His directions. The lesson for us is: God may not be in the thunder sounds of our praise or in the wind of our experiences or in some earth-shaking circumstance; or even in the purifying fire of the Lord — rather, the Lord comes to us when we are ready to hear His voice. We must wait for the direction of the Lord before we can do the will of the Lord!
Our work for God is not finished because we get discouraged. Satan is always ready to take advantage of a time of weariness and discouragement; “he loves to fish in troubled waters.”
Look to the Lord for direction, and you will hear that still small voice saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.”
From the Bulletin Article Archives: October 17, 2004.