Not What Is, But What Can Be

1 Kings 18:41-44

The prophet Elijah had declared that there would be no rain because of the idolatry of Israel. In this passage of scripture Elijah notified King Ahab that “there is a sound of abundance of rain”. Sometimes when we have had drought periods in our lives it is easy to believe that the drought will continue. We need to know that when people begin to pray you had better bring your umbrella because it is going to rain. Elijah sent his servant seven times to look toward the sea and report what he saw. The servant went time after time and told Elijah that he didn’t see anything, until the seventh time. We need to be diligent in our prayers when we ask God for something. Elijah had prayed for the rain to start again so he knew God would answer his prayer. What if he had not sent his servant the seventh time to look? It was the seventh time that the servant saw a cloud “like a man’s hand”. Elijah knew that God had answered his prayer. Elijah wasn’t content to live with things as they were but saw them as they could be when he involved God through prayer.

Hebrews 11:1 tells us “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” God is still a creator. He still makes something out of nothing. God made it rain for Elijah even though there was no rain in the forecast. God created rain out of nothing because His faithful servant prayed such. If we have faith in God, and faithfully serve Him, He will hear and answer our prayers even when there seems to be no way in our mind that our situation can be resolved.

I was asking God to do things for our church and He told me to stop looking with my natural eyes. I need to look for the cloud. I may not even be able to see it at first but it is there and I need to keep looking until I see it. Once I spot it, I know that it is full of rain.

In 2 Kings the king of Syria was upset with Elisha and sent a great army to apprehend him. It was one man plus God against an army. Who do you think came out on top? (See 2 Kings 6:16 through 2 Kings 6:17). The young man with Elisha just saw the great army and was worried about his, and Elisha’s, fate. Elisha prayed that God would open the eyes of the young man so he could see that those that were with them were more than those that be with the Syrian army. When God opened his eyes he saw the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around them to protect them. When God opens our eyes we see that we have all the help we will ever need in this world. Again, the key is to commit our lives to Jesus Christ. Have you made Jesus your Savior and Lord? Those that have see things as they can be, not just as they are.