Dear People Who Keep Company with God,
In October 2006 the Holy Spirit River was manifested in our church in an undeniable way. Right from the beginning the Lord told me, “You are not where you should be, I am doing this to get you there quicker than you would normally.” That is what you call acceleration. Almost from the beginning, I asked the Lord the same question my children would ask me every time we would take them on a road trip, “Are we there yet?”Recently, I came to peace about this. I believe He has brought us to where we should be. We do not have to keep trying to get “there” because we are “there“. We can live from “there” and go from “there” and of course“there” will move with the Lord, but I have not been concerned about it moving; I had to get settled in my heart that we got “there”. God got us “there”. “There” is not an achievement or natural place, but is simply being in the current will of God.
As the River began to flow the Lord impressed upon me to study Elijah’s life as that would reveal some of the ways of God for us during this time. Here is something that stood out to me, but I did not truly grasp the fuller meaning of it like I do now. Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, ” As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 2 The word of the LORD came to him, saying, 3 “Go away from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. 4 “It shall be that you will drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.” 1 Kings 17:1-4.
It was a time of shaking and great hardship in Israel. The Lord told Elijah to go and hide himself at the brook Cherith. He had commanded the ravens to bring Elijah provision “there”. The Lord didn’t send Elijah’s provision to where he was. If Elijah had not obeyed his life would had been in jeopardy. I believe the Lord always provides for us, but sometimes we fail to receive the provision because we are not where we are suppose to be in the will of God. In times of shaking and hardship it is so critical to be in the “there” of the Lord. We had no inklings two years ago that we would be facing the shaking that are going on now in our nation.
This is not a one time thing – our “there” moves, some of us have stopped growing spiritually, no longer flowing with what the Spirit is currently doing because you are still hiding at the ‘brook Cherith’ and didn’t go“there” when it was time. “Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” 1 Kings 17:8-9. When we begin to sense an ebb in the flow of the Spirit we need to pay attention as this may be a signal that our “there” is about to move.
Finally, this is something I have heard all my Christian life that I think applies to us; great temptations follow great victories or great breakthroughs. Elijah had successfully humiliated and defeated the prophets of Baal, called down fire from heaven, broke a three year drought, but the next day, a message from Jezebel caused him to run away in fear (1 Kin. 19:1-3). Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:9. Elijah wasn’t“there” anymore, he was in a cave. You can be in the will of God, flowing with the Holy Spirit one day and in a cave the next. A lot of things can put you in a cave; fatigue, disappointment, fear, intimidation, sin, witchcraft, etc. It is not a time for any of God’s people to languish in caves. He is the God of second chances and His “there” awaits you.
Many Blessings, BW