What are you doing here?

This past January, when the new year was beginning, a friend of mine talked me into reading through what is known as "The Conflict of the Ages" series. She was going to be joining a group of people on Facebook who would also be reading through the series this year, going at a rate of one new chapter each day and completing the five book series sometime a little bit before the end of the year. It sounded like a lofty but probably unreachable goal to me, as I had already committed to reading the Bible through this year, and I wasn't even sure I was going to make it through that. You know how it is, especially when you are a mom. Unless you can drag yourself out of bed WAY before anyone else is even THINKING of getting up, well, your best laid plans of having quiet time with the Lord are soon lost in the midst of "Help me get dressed" "Have you seen my socks?" "Can you help me with my hair?" and "I need a lunch packed for today." All good things, but once the day starts it's like a river that just carries you over the waterfall at the end!

But on the other hand--I know myself well enough to know that it just MIGHT make a difference for me, if I was doing the reading as part of a "group". For me, just knowing that other people are doing the same thing as me really helps me to stick with it. So still half believing that it was impossible for me to keep up, I agreed that I would add reading the "Conflict" series to my list of goals for the new year.

Well, here we are, almost 1/4th of the way through the year, and I have to say I have been tremendously blessed by my readings. Oh, there have been a few days here and there that it has been impossible for me to get in that day's reading, but knowing that I would soon be sunk if I didn't catch up quickly I made it a priority and got caught up!

Which brings me to today. I have already read through "Patriarchs and Prophets", the first book in the series which goes from creation to the end of King David's reign, and am now starting into book two which is "Prophets and Kings". This book tells about from the end of King David to when Jesus was born. The past several days the chapters have been telling about the time of Elijah--how the Children of Israel left worshipping the true God, and started worshipping idols just like all the other heathen people who were living in the nations around them. It makes me think about influence, and how we are all effected by others. My cousin-in-law, who influenced me to read through my Bible this year. My friend Lynda, who influenced me to read through the "Conflict" series. These are positive influences. Yet when I look back at my life, I can see clearly where I have also been negatively influenced by those I was hanging out with--and I regret now some of the choices I made. It's easy to read in the Bible or other books about the Children of Israel, and how they did wrong and we think to ourselves that "WE" would never be like THEM. Surely "WE" would not have forgotten all the wonderous things God had done for us if only "WE" were the Children of Israel. "WE" would have never worshipped idols......but the truth is that we do. And just as others have an influence on us, we also are being an influence on them. Are we encouraging others in their attempts to walk closer with God?

Today the chapter I read was based on 1 Kings 19:9-18. Elijah had already had the showdown on top of Mount Carmel with the priests of Baal. Fire had literally come down from heaven in front of everyone--burning up not only the sacifice Elijah had prepared to the true God, but had burned up even the very stones the alter was made of. The people of Israel had repented of their idol worship, and declared that they would worship the true God once more. Yet--after all these miracles--when Queen Jezebel threatened that she was going to kill Elijah since he had killed her prophets of Baal, he ran. Elijah, the prophet who was fearless when delivering his message to King Ahab, who told Ahab straight out that it was HIS own sins that had caused the trouble (years of drought), who plainly pointed out the sins of the people and pleaded with them to repent and return to God. THIS is the man who turned and hightailed it away into a wilderness, running from the evil Queen very much like a child who runs and hides under their bed when they have done something wrong. But Elijah hadn't done something wrong--it was the King and Queen who had. But somehow, even after the great display of God's power, Elijah lost sight on just who it was that he was working for,and instead of standing firm, he ran.

Of course, God knew where Elijah was. And He knew why he was there. But God did not give up on Elijah. He did not say "Oh well, HE certainally failed THAT test, didn't he? I'd better find another prophet." No. Instead God sent an angel after Elijah. When the angel came to Elijah who was hiding by that time in a cave, the angel asks him right out "What are you doing here?" God had not sent Elijah to the cave--fear did. When we are doing what God has asked us to, we do not need to fear for what may happen. We may not be doing what the world would say is the "wise" thing for us to do. But if it is what God has asked us to do, it is exactly where we will be the safest.

A couple of my favorite sentences from Prophets and Kings, the chapter I read today, are as follows:
"Abiding in God's love, you may stand every test." p. 175
"Walk by faith in the path He marks out. Trials will come, but go forward." p. 175
"Christ will never abandon those for whom He has died. We may leave Him and be overwhelmed with temptation, but Christ can never turn from one for whom He has paid the ransom of His own life." p. 176

What are you doing here? Am I where God wants me to be, doing what He wants me to do? Are you?