You Are Not Alone: Sitting with Elijah Under the Broom Tree
Are you burdened by feeling alone? This message is for you! Learn how and where to find God’s presence in the midst of difficult, lonely circumstances.
Jesus came here and experienced complete and total aloneness. He did that so you wouldn’t have to. He did that to create a community where his presence could be manifest. I want to challenge you to move toward community, toward God.
About the Speaker
Joel Wolski has been a passionate follower of Christ for over 30 years and serves on the Board of Faith Chapel. He is dedicated to living and sharing a Christ-filled life. Through the years, he has also been both a student and leader in Bible studies. His greatest desire is to help others grow in their identity in Christ. Also an avid photographer, you can follow Joel on Instagram or his website.
How and Where to Find God’s Presence.
“Tell them what I have done.”
God has something unique and personal to say to each of us through his word. I was seeking God for what specific word he would have me share.
Last week, driving here, I felt him say, “Tell them what I have done.” Simple, straightforward, basic. That’s how I know it’s God, though I do prefer it when God gives me a little more to go with than this.
Finding hope in Elijah’s trial.
So, Ahab the King of Israel was naughty and married the evil foreign priestess of Baal, Jezebel. Jezebel had been systematically exterminating all the prophets of God. The super-prophet Elijah was instructed by God to pray that the rain would cease. He did, and it did. Three years into the draught, Elijah confronts Ahab and says they’re going to settle this once and for all. They have a big showdown on Mount Carmel, there’s fire from heaven and God wins, and then Elijah kills 450 prophets of Baal. Jezebel is kinda miffed by this, so she puts out an assassination order on Elijah. And then…
‘Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself traveled on a day’s journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” 5Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep’ (1 Kings 19:3-5, BSB).
We get to see Elijah’s true state of mind. Have you felt this way? Alone, isolated, depressed, suicidal?
Let me be explicitly clear: depression, being overwhelmed by feelings of being alone, and even suicidal thoughts are not a sign that God has abandoned you. It just means you’re human, just like Elijah was human. This is clear in the fact that God sent a messenger to Elijah to minister to his physical needs.
Paul reminds us of this:
‘Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord’ (Romans 8:35-39, NLT).
God has not abandoned you! Lest we assume this only applies to believers, Paul already stated in Romans 5:6-8 that Christ died for us while we were helpless, still sinners. God loved us while we were still sinning. So, it’s not a matter of whether God is there or not, it’s a matter of experiencing God’s presence.
I remember a particularly dark time in my life when I was looking for a tree to drive my car into because my life was a mess. I was outside of God’s will at that point in my life. He didn’t abandon me; I abandoned him. Even in those dark days over 20 years ago, I could sense God’s presence.
God’s response to Elijah.
Elijah returned to Mount Sinai, the place of great signs and wonders and where Moses had encountered God. But the Lord said to Elijah, “Why are you here?”
‘Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”
11 “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave’ (1 Kings 19:10-13, NLT).
And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Signs and wonders are there to point us toward God, not to replace him.
God showed up in a very real and tangible way, God was literally just breathing down Elijah’s neck, but Elijah still felt alone. Why? It wasn’t about Elijah having more of God; he already had about as much of God as anyone could survive.
Why isn’t God enough? Look at God’s response. He doesn’t say, “OK, well you need to pray more. You’re just not seeking me enough. You need more faith.” He doesn’t say, “Here, let me pour out more of my spirit on you.”
‘Then the Lord told him, “Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram. 16 Then anoint Jehu grandson of Nimshi to be king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from the town of Abel-meholah to replace you as my prophet. 17 Anyone who escapes from Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jehu will be killed by Elisha! 18 Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!”’ (1 Kings 19:15-18, NLT)
The issue God addresses is Elijah’s statement of being alone and the response was to provide Elijah with allies. It was about getting Elijah back into community.
But why is this so important? Or, why do I think it’s important? Because we aren’t designed to be alone with God. To understand this, we need to go back to the beginning; all the way back to Genesis, to understand how we were created to exist.
“It is not good for man to be ALONE.”
God said it wasn’t good for man to be alone, so God provided a helper who was just right for him (Genesis 2:18). Before going further, we need to understand what is meant by the word “helper” here. In Hebrew, the word helper is “ezer”. The word occurs 21 times in the Old Testament, of which 16 refer to God as our helper. “Ezer” conveys the sense of facilitation, or making something possible, not making it easier. “Helper” never conveys a subordinate role. Like oxygen “helps” us live. God was looking for one to make it possible for Adam to not be alone. So, God made animals but they still weren’t the right helpers; then he made a woman who just right for the man, and God blessed them (Genesis 2:19-22, 28).
There is a growing trend in “emotional support animals,” when what we need are “emotional support people.” As a culture, we are becoming more and more isolated from each other. This idea of being together is not about spousal companionship, but about community. Eve was not the answer to Adam being alone, but as “helper” she made possible the creation of community. The two of them together accomplish what neither could do alone.
Tracing the pattern – he isolated himself.
Elijah said, “I am the only one left.” But he left his servant in Beersheba and went ahead, alone (1 Kings 19:3).
In Luke, Jesus sent out his people two by two, not alone, because they would be in the midst of dangerous people (lambs among wolves) (Luke 10:1-3).
Why did he send them in pairs? Because your enemy is craftier and more maneuverable than you are, and you need someone to watch your back.
At Mount Carmel Elijah announces, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left.” But, before Mount Carmel, he meets Obadiah who tells him, that he hid a hundred of the Lord’s prophets in caves and supplied them with food and water (1 Kings 18:13).
“For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20, NLT).
God is in the midst of his people. If you want to find God, seek out his people. God’s presence is manifest in the gathering of his people. This is entirely distinct from gathering in groups as a distraction. I’m saying all this not to blame Elijah for his own struggle, but I want to call attention to those called to support Elijah. When instructed to do so, his servant left him. How was this “serving” his master? You can’t serve from a distance. Was it the servant’s place to defy the will of the prophet? We see an example of Elisha doing the opposite: Elijah told Elisha (his servant), “Stay here,” but Elisha said, “I will not leave you” (2 Kings 2:1). Two more times Elijah told Elisha to stay behind, and two more times Elisha defied that command.
Notice how those 100 prophets stayed hidden in the caves. Where were they when everything went down on Mount Camel?
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves” (Galatians 6:2, NIV).
We can’t just wait for people to ask us for help. A prophet hiding in a cave is no prophet. When I was going through that dark time in my life, I knew God was there. That may have been what made it so hard, that as bad as I had screwed up, God hadn’t abandoned me. I had tried really hard to drive everyone away, because I deserved to be alone. And God never left me. He never abandoned me. As much as I may have tried, I was never alone. But the depression, the anxiety, the complete and total shame and dread persisted even in his presence. It wasn’t until I got back into community with fellow believers that I began to heal.
What it REALLY looks like to be alone.
But what if you don’t have other believers to support you? What if you don’t feel God’s presence? Community without God is just empty distraction from our aloneness. (Remember, where they are gathered in my name.) There is a way to God, through Jesus Christ who has experienced what we have.
“This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most” (Hebrews 4:15-16, NLT).
So, Jesus knows better than we do what it means to feel totally alone when he cried out while hanging on his own tree, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” Why have you left me alone? (Matthew 27:46). I was reminded that Jesus was quoting Psalm 22
This is what God led me to. Take this in.
“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? 2 Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.
3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4 Our ancestors trusted in you, and you rescued them. 5 They cried out to you and were saved. They trusted in you and were never disgraced.
6 But I am a worm and not a man. I am scorned and despised by all! 7 Everyone who sees me mocks me. They sneer and shake their heads, saying, 8 “Is this the one who relies on the Lord? Then let the Lord save him! If the Lord loves him so much, let the Lord rescue him!”
9 Yet you brought me safely from my mother’s womb and led me to trust you at my mother’s breast. 10 I was thrust into your arms at my birth. You have been my God from the moment I was born.
11 Do not stay so far from me, for trouble is near, and no one else can help me. 12 My enemies surround me like a herd of bulls; fierce bulls of Bashan have hemmed me in! 13 Like lions they open their jaws against me, roaring and tearing into their prey. 14 My life is poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax, melting within me. 15 My strength has dried up like sunbaked clay. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have laid me in the dust and left me for dead. 16 My enemies surround me like a pack of dogs; an evil gang closes in on me. They have pierced my hands and feet. 17 I can count all my bones. My enemies stare at me and gloat. 18 They divide my garments among themselves and throw dice for my clothing.
19 O Lord, do not stay far away! You are my strength; come quickly to my aid! 20 Save me from the sword; spare my precious life from these dogs. 21 Snatch me from the lion’s jaws and from the horns of these wild oxen. 22 I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise you among your assembled people. 23 Praise the Lord, all you who fear him! Honor him, all you descendants of Jacob! Show him reverence, all you descendants of Israel! 24 For he has not ignored or belittled the suffering of the needy. He has not turned his back on them, but has listened to their cries for help.
25 I will praise you in the great assembly. I will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who worship you. 26 The poor will eat and be satisfied. All who seek the Lord will praise him. Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy. 27 The whole earth will acknowledge the Lord and return to him. All the families of the nations will bow down before him. 28 For royal power belongs to the Lord. He rules all the nations.
29 Let the rich of the earth feast and worship. Bow before him, all who are mortal, all whose lives will end as dust. 30 Our children will also serve him. Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord. 31 His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born. They will hear about everything he has done” (Psalm 22, NLT, emphasis added).
So, this then is what God has done. He tells us be there for each other.
I want to challenge you to move toward community, toward God.
Do you need to approach God for the first time?
Or, are you supposed to be climbing out of isolations and reaching out to those around you who are in need? I want to challenge you to be Jesus to those who need him.
This is what I’m here to tell you. When I started this and God said, “Tell them what I have done,” I was thinking small. “Tell them what I did for Elijah. Tell them what I did for you.” That’s my testimony.
Jesus came here and experienced complete and total aloneness. He did that so you wouldn’t have to. He did that to create a community where his presence could be manifest. It’s in the gathering of believers where God’s presence is manifest. His power is made tangible in our lives.
If you don’t know what it means to have God in your life, I invite you right now to “come boldly” before Christ.
If you know God deeply, but still are sometimes burdened with feelings of being alone, seek out the community of other believers. This is where you’ll find God’s presence.
Suggested Praise and Worship
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