Have you ever felt completely over matched? Have you been outnumbered? How did you feel? Were you afraid? Did you feel as though there was no way out? Were you thinking your time was up?
We have all faced big tasks in our lives. Some of us have faced overwhelming odds. We may have overcome those odds, or we may have succumbed to them. Being in a situation such as that is no fun at all.
When we find ourselves in an overwhelming situation, how do we respond? There are certainly times we may feel as though we just want to give up. We may want to pull the covers over our head and not get out of bed, hoping the situation will just go away. Unfortunately, as we all discover, they don’t simply go away. They must be dealt with.
We have the option to allow the situation to overwhelm us. We have another option to struggle in our own strength to overcome it. Or we can turn to God and ask Him to give us the strength we need. We can ask God to help us overcome the situation.
We see in today’s passage the prophet Elijah facing off against four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal. He has seen the Israelites turn to Baal to be their savior. He has seen them leave God for a false god. Elijah realizes something must be done about it.
Elijah calls for two bulls to be brought and allows the prophets of Baal to choose the bull they want first. They build an altar, pile it with wood, cut the bull in pieces, and place it on the altar. Elijah instructs them not to light the wood but call out to Baal to have him light it. They call and call and call. What Elijah knew would happen, happened. Baal did not light the wood on fire.
Elijah, in turn, builds a stone altar, piles the wood on it, cuts the bull into pieces, has men dig a trench around it, then has others pour four large jars of water over the altar three times so that everything is soaked even to the water running off and into the trench. Elijah calls out to God. God doesn’t simply light a fire but consumes the bull, the wood, and all the water.
When we rely on God during our overwhelming situations, truly trust in Him, knowing we cannot do it on our own, He comes through. God will not leave us hanging. He may allow us to get to the point of no other choice, just so we turn to Him as the only option. We are to choose to trust God at all times.
I pray we all decide to trust God. I pray we choose not to wait until we have hit rock bottom to reach out to God. I pray each one of us will trust God in all situations at all times. Choose God in overwhelming situations. Trust God at all times. Reach out to God.
I Kings 18:22 Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.”
Marty Pressey 