And He said to them, "It is written,'My house shall be called a house of prayer,’…”
Matthew 21:13 NKJV

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Faith Trumps Worry

Tony Hauck
Church on the Rock - Melbourne

I’d had some fairly large concerns on my mind, the kind that weigh you down and make you want to give up. I’d spent about half an hour just walking, praying in the Spirit, and listening, but I hadn’t heard anything. Just when I was about to conclude that God wasn’t going to say anything to me, He started speaking. But He wasn’t answering my questions. He didn’t address anything I was worried about. Instead, He began speaking vision to me for an upcoming ministry opportunity.

As I was wondering why He was talking now, but ignoring my questions, He reminded me of the story of Elijah in I Kings 19. Elijah had just called down fire from heaven on Mt. Carmel, then fled from the threat of Jezebel to Mt. Sinai, where he was telling God about how bad things were and how he was the only one left serving Him (see verse 14). Romans 11:2-4 refers to this as the time Elijah interceded against Israel. In a weak moment he lost faith and saw things only from his human perspective. Basically he was ready to quit. So how did God respond? He gave Elijah something to do (three tasks to be exact), and reminded him that he wasn’t alone (I Kings 19:18). He changed Elijah’s focus and perspective. By giving him tasks God was restoring faith and vision, and not accepting his resignation.

So what was my take away? Don’t worry about those concerns I had. They’ll work out. Just focus on what God has for me to do. So I did. And they did.

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