When the Creek Runs Dry

Paolo Fiammingo: Elijah Fed by the Ravens / Public Domain

  At the beginning of our virtual church service on Sunday morning, we sang the song, “Days of Elijah.” Even though the song is starting to show its age, it’s a favorite at the Gap. Whenever we sing it together, voices get a smidge louder.

  The song, written by Irish worship leader Robin Mark, hearkens back to the great prophet of Israel, Elijah, and his experience proclaiming the word of the Lord. Elijah did the Lord’s bidding and witnessed great miracles from his own hands. But, as the song reminds us, Elijah lived through days of great trial, of famine and darkness and sword.
This takes me to one of my favorite childhood Bible stories. Something about Elijah sitting by a creek being air-dropped bread by a raven has always appealed to me. God provided his servant everything he needed during the great famine. Of course, eventually God allowed the creek to run dry in order to move Elijah from that place to another. Necessity moved him from Cherith Creek to Zarephath. He went from being fed by a raven to being fed by a widow with miraculous regenerative bread ingredients. Wherever he went, Elijah had to trust the Lord for his next meal.

  You may think you are different from Elijah, but you aren’t. Raven or not so raven, your daily bread comes from God. We all trust Him for our next meal. Sure, our methods have become more sophisticated. These days our funds are air-dropped electronically into our bank accounts. But make no mistake, God is still the source of our daily bread.

  This time of quarantine reminds us just how dependent we really are on the Lord. The bread shelf at the supermarket empties quickly. Even bread flour is scarce, as people resort to baking their own. One thing we know about bread is it has a short shelf-life. We’re always looking for the next loaf. Perhaps this is why Jesus taught His disciples to pray to the Father, “Give us this day our daily bread.” He was reminding them that they were dependent on God for all of their needs. On another occasion, after miraculously feeding a large crowd of people, Jesus told them, “I am the bread of life.” Jesus is the spiritual daily bread God gives us. All our spiritual needs are met in Him. When we need physical food, God provides bread. When we need spiritual life, joy, and peace, God provides Jesus.

I'm praying that this time in our lives passes quickly. But I'm also praying that we won't miss out on all of the rich lessons God has for us as we sit by the stream and wait for the raven. If nothing else I pray we are reminded that there’s truly no god like Jehovah.
 
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