Weekend Preview | Don’t Hate the Messenger: Part 2 – Elijah

Journey Church - July 24, 2015

By Chris Denning

Last weekend, we took a look at the prophet Samuel & a small piece of his story. I love how Zack summed up his message with 5 things we can learn from Samuel. Check them out:

God desires to speak to us.

We don’t always hear very well.

God speaks to us primarily today through His Word.

God is patient with us.

God has spoken to us through Jesus.

I love these insights, especially how relevant this is to me in my life today. The Old Testament is not dry or old stories that don’t have anything to offer me today as a follower of Jesus, rather they are rich reminders that consistently point us to God.
This coming weekend, we’re continuing our series Don’t Hate the Messenger with a look at the prophet Elijah. I love the story of Elijah because of his brazen confidence in God. His faith is obviously not rooted in himself or in his abilities, but rather in what God will do.
I think there is a difference between believing God could do anything and that He will do anything. When you’ve been a part of seeing God do incredible things, I find it difficult to not be changed as a result. Not changed on a superficial level, but changed on a foundational level.
When I read about Elijah, that’s what I see. A guy who has seen God move in such a way in his life that he was foundationally changed. Changed so deeply that living the same life is impossible.
I think a lot of us want to live such a life. To live differently because we’ve been impacted by something bigger than ourselves, greater than our reach. Somehow if we could reach such an experience, maybe then we’d be able to do X, Y, & Z.
Elijah’s contact with God was incredible and life changing, but we live in a time where we don’t have to hope for a chance encounter with God. We have the ability to have a close relationship with Him every day because of Jesus.
As we saw above, Zack said that “God speaks to us primarily today through His word.” I couldn’t agree more. If you want to know who Jesus is, to see what He is like, to understand how God loves us, to know how the Holy Spirit moves in our lives, simply read your Bible.
Reading your Bible will give you an opportunity to encounter God on a daily basis. If we are willing and seeking Him, He will speak to us, even in the quiet moments.
I also believe there is something to consistently spending time in scripture that develops our ability to hear from God. It makes sense doesn’t it? It follows that the more time you spend learning to see God’s heart in His Word, that we would be more able to develop our relationship with Him.
If this is you, if you are desperate for a touch of something beyond yourself, for contact with the living God, then read your Bible. It’s not a magic or formulaic activity, but rather a relational experience. Before you read, pray and ask God to speak to You.
Just like Samuel, just like Elijah, God wants to speak to us, and even through us. Our job is to be willing to hear from Him and to pay attention. Now go read your Bible.

Join us this weekend at 9 or 11am
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or Online at TheJourneyOnline.tv at 11am