Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook, near where it enters the Jordan River. Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.” So Elijah did as the Lord told him and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook. 1 Kings 17:1-6 (NLT)
In the early 80’s, I heard a message by John Osteen called “A Place Called There.” I heard the taped message during a difficult time early in my ministry, and it really made an impact on me. Over the years, I have come back to this story repeatedly and meditated on God’s Word. I wanted to share with you today a few gems I have found over the years.
Really, the first point is that Elijah received a word from God. Many people stop right there. “I haven’t heard from God,” they say. Yet, we have been given the Bible – which is God’s Word to us! And many times, God speaks to us, but we aren’t listening, or ignore what He is saying. To find the Blessings of “There”, you must have a word from God! When we find our identity in Christ, we are open to hearing the voice of God in new and fresh ways…and that positions us to enter the blessings of “There”.
Secondly, Elijah went. This is an easy decision; but I know I have missed God at times because He has spoken, but I didn’t move! Elijah could have stayed right where he was, fasted and prayed and begged God to send him food, but it would have never come! God has said to go by Kerith Brook. There was a specific place for Elijah to be to receive his blessing “there.” There used to be an old song that said, “I want to be under the spout, I want to be under the spout where the glory comes out!” So when we enter the place God has called, we are under the spout where the Blessings of “There” will come.
Thirdly, we must be true to the message God has given us! We read that Elijah went to the brook, but in verse 7 it says, But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land. Seasons change! But God spoke again to Elijah (vs 8-15) and told him to Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you. God gave Elijah instructions, but had he not been true to the message, he may have missed his provision, and the widow would have missed hers! Sometimes we let the external circumstances – what things “look like” – to deter us from speaking what God wants us to say! Elijah could have looked at the widow and thought, “She is getting ready to die – she does not have enough to give me food, certainly she is not the one,” and kept silent. But he spoke God’s Word, and the results were full provision for the rest of the drought period for the widow, her family, and Elijah!
In summary, I believe the story of Elijah here gives us three things to consider.
1.) God has a Word for you
2.) Position yourself in agreement with that Word
3.) Be faithful to speak what God has given you to say
We are then positioned to receive the blessings of the Place called “there.”
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