Read 1 Kings 19:13b-18
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”
The illustration God gave Elijah by showing up in a calm, silent voice likely would have been enough of an answer for Elijah, but God doesn’t leave it there. Once again, he asks Elijah what he is doing on Mt Horeb. Essentially, God is saying, “Why did you run to me, Elijah? You were exhausted, done, ready to quit, but here you are. Why are you here?”. God knows that deep in Elijah’s heart there is still a faint flame of faith. Elijah is honest again, and this time God gives Elijah the purpose he desperately needed. Notice Elijah’s response – it sounds a bit self-pitiful, maybe a bit self-righteous even.
But God’s response reminds Elijah that it was never Elijah’s job to save the people. Elijah’s next task is to go anoint more people – to pass the baton to another generation of prophets that will continue God’s work. Elijah’s ticket out of the wilderness is to invest in the development of others. To take himself out of the center and let someone else lead.
One of my mentors likes to say that the greatest task of a leader is to make himself or herself replaceable. In other words, our greatest calling in life is to equip and enable others to do even more than we have been able to do, and when it’s time, to pass the baton with humility, grace, and a rooted identity. This is exactly what God is asking of Elijah. By turning his focus to others, by having the same heart for others as God has, Elijah is drawn out of the wilderness.
Prayer: Lord, it is so easy to focus on myself, especially in wilderness seasons. I confess that like Elijah, I can sometimes fall into self-pity and lose sight of your bigger picture. Remind me, Lord, that your ways are higher than mine, and help me trust your plan.
