An 'All-Weather' Kind of Trust

An ‘All-Weather’ Kind of Trust
1 Kings 17:2-7
Pastor Aaron Robinson

The focus for this week for our Lenten devotionals is trusting God.  I know someone is saying that is easy to do because God has never failed me. The problem is that our trust muscle is built by our relationships with those around us and if that muscle isn't strong, it carries over into our spiritual lives.  They say for every action there is a reaction, so for every disappointment, every hurt, and every betrayal, our ability to trust is slowly chipped away.  When our trust muscle isn't used there's atrophy in that muscle, meaning there is weakness.

Sunday morning in the metro Atlanta area, we woke up to showers in some areas and downpours in others. There were many people across the metro Atlanta area who decided the weather was too rough to come out of the house for church. They were concerned about the conditions of the roads and the severity of the storm. I'm sure they thought about what they might meet on their way to church. Others felt comfortable in their homes and knew that traveling to their places of worship would create some anxiety.
 
Weather can impact us in so many ways - literally and metaphorically. Sometimes the metaphorical storms of life cause us to stay in our comfortable corners, afraid to journey to places that could feed our soul.  The bad weather in our lives causes us to question ourselves, prevent us from getting to where God wants us to be.  The seasons of torrential rainfall {grief), makes us wonder if the sun will ever shine again. The moments of lightning flashes and thunder rolling frighten us. The months and sometimes years of drought makes us question the growth in our lives.  The weather in our lives has an impact on our faith, when the sun is shining and every day is bright, we see God clearly but when the clouds are thick and the wind is raging, we wonder where is God in the mist of our bad weather moments.

Today's devotional is about an individual whose trust in the Lord was strong in all types of weather. The text doesn't tell us much about the main character in this story, it just gives a name and where he is from.  This text doesn't tell us much about Elijah but what it tells us is he speaks with authority from God and trusts God seemingly without question. These five verses inform us that Elijah’s trust in God leads to his protection, his provisions and his peace.

Elijah, in the text, tells king Ahab that it will not rain nor will there be any dew on the ground until he commands it. In so many words, he is predicting a drought.   This forthcoming drought has the potential to impact the one who predicted it but the text informs us that God tells Elijah to depart and go to the Wadi Cherith.  Elijah must trust God enough to know when to leave a dangerous situation. The text tells us that God said go and hide yourself by this river.  I truly believe moments in my life God has protected me by telling me not to go or when to go and because I listened, I was kept out of harm's way. There are moments in my life that I get upset when I am delayed or things don't go the way I want them to but then I say maybe this is protection in these moments. Remember that time, everything wasn't going your way and it made you late. Maybe God was whispering in your ear, telling you to slow down. No this isn't an excuse for being late, this is an example of listening to God and to learn to trust God's protecting power.

Once Elijah reaches the Wadi he is provided with food and drink. Elijah's trust in God led him to the provisions that he will need as he endures the drought. If Elijah would not have listened to God and not trusted what God was saying, he would not have had what was needed during the drought.
 
Too often we trust everything else but God, regarding our provisions. We trust the job will be there forever or the retirement plan is going to take care of us. Seldom do we trust God enough to take the leap of faith toward our purpose and God's plan for our life.  In the midst of the drought the text informs us that while Elijah was at the Wadi it flowed, and the ravens provided him with two meals a day. The interesting point about this text is ravens are not birds that share, yet they provide for Elijah.  When we trust God, we are saying God we trust that you will provide.

Elijah’s trust opened the door for peace Because he trusted God, he understood there was protection and provision. He had no anxiety about Ahab coming after him or about the meals he would eat because God was protecting him and providing for him. His decision to trust God and go where God guided him created a peaceful place for him.  If we would just trust God, peace will walk with us. In that trust there is an assurance that God is with us. That trust reminds us of God's insurance, covering us in all situations.

Elijah had an all-weather kind of trust; he trusted God regardless of what was going on. An all-weather kind of trust looks past the clouds and sees the Son.  An all-weather kind of trust ignores the flashes of lightning and the roll of the thunder and hears the Son.  An all-weather kind of trust knows that in the midst of a drought there's living water that you can depend on.
 
The question is do you have an all-weather kind of trust? Do you trust God regardless of the circumstances of life? On this Lenten journey let's grow our trust muscle and learn to trust God more and more each day.

Prayer:  Most gracious and merciful God, thank you for trusting us enough the pour gifts in us.  Thank you for forgiving us when we didn't trust you the way we should. Thank you for showing grace when we fail to listen to you. Also thank you for providing opportunities for us to trust you again and again. God matures that we might trust you more. Amen and Ase!