Flying High, Falling Flat Our little granddaughter is a Mickey Mouse fan. So the other day I got her a big helium Mickey balloon. Its gone through three pretty distinct phases. First, Mickey was totally flat and folded up into a little square. Then the lady at the store gave him a shot of helium thats made Mickey big and flying high. In fact, without a string to tie him down, hed fly away and end up somewhere in Bolivia. I know from past experience, though, that theres another phase coming. His flying high days cant last forever. One day, were going to find him all soft, mushy, and slowly shriveling up on the floor. The life and times of a helium balloon arent all that different from the life and times of folks like you and me. We start out flat, we open our lives to Jesus Christ, He enlarges our life, gives us some victorious seasons where were flying high, and then often overnight, weve gone flat and weve hit the ground. It doesnt have to be that way. If you know that cycle all too well, you need to see how this cycle worked in the life of one of Gods great servants in the Bible. Elijah was one of the most powerful of Gods ancient prophets. And he was flying high in God that day on Mount Carmel when he single-handedly challenged 450 prophets of the idol Baal to a spiritual showdown. It was sort of a spiritual Gunfight at the O. K. Corral. Elijahs challenge is to see whose God will consume with fire from heaven the sacrifice thats been laid on the altar. The message for today begins with 1 Kings 18:37 as Elijah prays in front of this army of false prophets: Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that You, O Lord, are God, and that You are turning their hearts back again. The entire prayer is only 60 words, but Elijah mentions God nine times in those 60 words. On Mt. Carmel, it is clearly all about the Lord God. And the fire falls, consuming the sacrifice and causing everybody to cry, The Lord! He is God! Now fast forward to the next chapter. The king has threatened Elijahs life and in fear he runs to the desert. He sits under a tree, and in the Bibles words, prayed that he might die. I have had enough, Lord, he said. Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors. ... I have been very zealous for the Lord God ... I am the only one left (1 Kings 19:4-5, 10). On Mt. Carmel, it was all about God. In the desert, it was all about me. And thats the difference between flying high and falling flat. During the victory time, its all about the Lord. But often in the aftermath of a victory, something happens that makes it suddenly all about me, and we crash. Jesus said the devil is a thief who comes to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10). And every time God does something good in your life, the devil is there with some cheap shot he wants to use to rob you of the joy of what God has done. Dont fall for it. Its like youve just won the Super Bowl, youre walking off the field, and your defeated opponent says, Ill make you pay for this. And he gives you a bloody nose. Yes, he hurt you a little, but he cant change the outcome. You still won, and nothing he can do can change the victory. So when the joy-robber comes in after the victory and tries to get you all focused on yourself, you tell him, I know who this is, and I am not falling for it! We won, and you cant change it! Life wont always be flying high moments like Elijahs Mt. Carmel, but you can be consistently joyful and hopeful and positive, even when some of the air goes out. Because the joy of the Lord is your strength (Nehemiah 8:10), not the joy of your circumstances❤
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 19:38:11 +0000
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