02/17/2017 - Depression and the Juniper Tree
Are you depressed about something this morning? Do you feel that the Lord has backed away or allowed some tragedy to befall you? If so you are not alone. This has happened Throughout the Bible, and in my own life, but there is a word of wisdom for you this morning... just keep living.
"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 said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat."
1 Kings 19:4-5 KJV
In this scripture, in these words of Elijah, we see that God didn't give him some great message or salvation, but told him to get up and eat... get on with life and leave the rest to me. Then He provided Elijah with food and told him that this wasn't the end of the world but rather the beginning of a great journey in which Elijah would need God to feed him.
"And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee."
1 Kings 19:6-7 KJV
Now, Elijah could have just stayed there and continued to be depressed; after all, Jezebel was out to kill him, and his situation seemed to be beyond hope. He was distraught. Yet he listened to the angel, got up, and ate. He made the decision to just keep living. But it took a relapse and a second visit from the angel before he finally got up and reentered life.
"And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee. And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God."
1 Kings 19:7-8 KJV
We are just like Elijah. We are tempted to sit down and give up, to blame God, or to feel alone, when trouble or sorrow overcomes us. If the angel had not come to Elijah, an archeologist might well have stumble upon his bones in modern times; they would have been lying in a fetal position under a juniper tree where he had stayed until he died.... but he arose and just kept living.
We have this misconception that there are things happening in our lives that are outside of God's plan for us... or those around us... not true. When my father died I was broken and there was a hole in my life. I worried about my mother being alone and what would become of her. I thought this was the end of something, but it wasn't. I was witnessing the painful beginning of the next phase in my family's life. So was Elijah.
God doesn't leave us in tradgedy and heartbreak, He uses it to teach us something about ourselves and Him. He is right there as we shout at Him in our anger, or roll up in a ball during our sorrow. He has our next beginning already planned and beckons us to get up and eat. He wants us to just keep living... there is a journey ahead and He is ready to continue on it with us. The question becomes this; are you truly at the end of your rope, or are you asking God to take away your life?
Elijah wanted to die, and yet he still needed God's permission. He had lost faith in God's ability to help him, but not in the Lord's sovereignty and judgement. Is this you? Who is your angry voice directed at? When we are distraught, our fear, anger, and sorrow, can bring us to a crossroads. Which of these paths will we take? It really doesn't matter because God awaits along each of them. What lies ahead on all but one of them is life. By selecting a path of life we will have decided to just keep living, but the scenery and difficulty is different between each of these journeys. Which will you select?
Prayer:
Father, in my sorrow, grief, or anger, call to me. Tell me to get up and eat so that I might continue my journey with you. Lord, when I come to the various crossroads in my life, give me pause and let me hear your voice as it directs me along the path you would have me take. I know that I will find you on each of the roads ahead, but lead me along the one which allows me to walk closest with you, and not that one lonely road where I don't find you until judgement. Nothing happens that you don't see, and even in my suffering you are there. Never let me lose sight of you, and in even the most desperate of situations, let me see you beckoning me to follow along your narrow path. Lift me Father, and feed me so that I might be strong enough for the journey. I may have lost something wonderful, or faced a horrific happening in my life, but you have never forsaken me... you will forever comfort me. Call to me Lord, help me to resolve myself to just keep living, even when my circumstances overcome me and I find myself lying at the foot of a juniper tree.
Rich Forbes