English Article : IN MOMENTS OF DEEP DESPERATION | Feba Varghese

Romans 11:3-4

3““LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life”? 4 But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.””

At least at some instances of our life we may feel alone and lost and ironically those moments turn out to be our ‘worst times’. We often see in life that during the times when we actually need people around us, there would be none to comfort us. Take the example of a sorrowing family who experienced the passing away of a family member. On the day of funeral, there would be a lot of people gathering and supporting the family. There would be long speeches and promises made to comfort the bereaved family. But after about three weeks (may be even days), the same family would start experiencing loneliness. They may find no one to support and strengthen them in their crucial situations to move ahead in life.

Elijah was passing through a similar situation. He was being chased for his life by Queen Jezebel. He ran away into the wilderness and he requested God to take away His life. He felt all lost and he didn’t have any hope for his life. And he tells God,” I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” (Refer 1 Kings 19). The same Elijah who did a great miracle in Mount Carmel by bringing fire from heaven few days ago is now desperate for his life and he loses his interest to live any further.

It is interesting to note here that this is the same Elijah who restored the hope of the widow at Zarephath. Of an alien race, she was a widow with a child to keep. The poverty must have been most acute and she did not have any food to keep them alive. When famine struck she did not know where the next meal could come from

and she was almost sure her doom was decided. It was at such a crucial moment that God sends Elijah to her and uses him to be a source of blessing for her family. The same man who saved the woman and her son from the pangs of death is requesting God to take away his life. It must be deepest desperation that he says, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.”

We may have done great things in the past but at some points of life we may still feel alone and lost. We also might have fallen at the knees of God and said, “Enough Lord…I can move ahead no further”. We may have felt that there is no one to help us. At points of our desperation we lose our interest to live any longer and we may feel deserted. But the beautiful part is that God himself comes to help and comfort Elijah. God is answering to Elijah that there are 7000 men still alive in Israel who has not bowed to Baal. God is giving Elijah a ‘great promise’ here in his point of ‘deep desperation’.

Usually, it is during moments of deep desperation that we hear the voice of God. When we lose all hope, we run to God seeking His help and amazingly at those moments God answers us and gives us His promises.

Elijah was not aware of the 7000 around him and but God had planned and kept secure His chosen people. See, we are not alone in moments of desperation. There is Christ with us and God has kept many more prayer warriors around us even though we aren’t seeing them visually. We just need to trust His unfailing love.

Even if you run to the wilderness,
He will run behind you,
He will chase you with His love,
And restore your hopes,
Just trust Him!

(Feba Varghese)

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