I guess there’s no way he saw it coming. Mt. Carmel should have turned the tide . . . it should have been game, set, match for the God of Elijah . . . and by extension, for Elijah himself. The victory had been decisive (1Kings 18:20-40) . . . fire from heaven . . . people on their faces proclaiming, “The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God” . . . 450 dead prophets of Baal . . . surely it was over. Evidently not. Crazy Jezebel, with a credible track record for taking out the prophet’s of God, starts pinning up “Wanted, Dead or Dead” posters, with Elijah’s face on them, all over the place . . . giving herself 24 hours to ensure Elijah joins the prophets of Baal in the grave (1Kings 19:1-2). And it shakes Elijah to the core . . . you sense, almost breaking him.

The contrast is stark . . . from standing in victory on the Mt. Carmel to hiding under a bush in the wilderness. From crying out to the Lord to consume the water soaked sacrifice that the people might know He is God . . . to pleading with God that he might die . . . enough’s enough, he says. From the adrenaline rush of seeing God act in so mighty a manner . . . to being so overcome with hunger, exhaustion, and depression, that all he wants to do is sleep.

I can imagine Elijah thinking that Mt. Carmel should have been the victory to end the war . . . that somehow things should have become easier after such a display of God’s might . . . but it didn’t. I can picture him tired . . . fearful . . . confused . . . frustrated . . . despondent. He’s weary . . . time to go home, Lord.

And though God graciously deals with his burned out prophet . . . gently addressing his physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of His faithful servant . . . you wonder if Elijah was ever quite the same again. God provides food in order to restore Elijah’s physical strength (19:5-8) . . . and then the LORD reveals Himself again to Elijah in a gentle, small voice in order to renew him spiritually (19:12) . . . and then Elijah is “put back in the game,” God giving him a new set of tasks to undertake . . . one of which is to anoint his successor, Elisha. But I wonder if the heart of Elijah was not as “into it” as it may have once been.

James says that “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours” (James 5:17) . . . so what are the lessons to be learned from this weary prophet?

Perhaps first I need to be reminded that we’re not home yet . . . that yesterday’s victory doesn’t mean there won’t be a tomorrow’s battle . . . that, though I know how I want the script to be written, I’m not the author. Mine is to trust in the Lord.

And I guess the other take away is God’s faithfulness . . . and gentleness . . . in dealing with weary servants of God. Meeting the need . . . addressing the questions . . . getting them back in the game. As long there are “ears to hear” there will be a still, small voice sent from heaven to encourage and restore.

Sometimes we pilgrims can get weary . . . but all the time our God’s grace is sufficient . . . His love never ending.

To Him be glory . . .