Shift into Neutral

Hi, I'm Mike Whitmer.

Thanks for joining me for today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. I entitled this devotional, Shift Into Neutral. The man ahead of me at the car wash was on a mission. He purposely strode to the back of his pickup and removed the hitch so it wouldn't snag the high-powered rolling brushes. He paid the attendant then pulled on to the automated track, where he left his truck in drive. The attendant shouted after him, Neutral!

Neutral! But the man's windows were up and he couldn't hear. He zipped through the car wash in four seconds flat.

His truck barely got wet. Elijah was on a mission too. He was busy serving God in big ways. He had just defeated the prophets of Baal in a supernatural showdown, which left him drained.

He needed time in neutral. God brought Elijah to Mount Horeb, where he had appeared to Moses long before. Once again God shook the mountain, but he wasn't in the rock-shattering wind, earthquake, or raging fire. Instead, God came to Elijah in a gentle whisper.

When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out to meet God. You and I are on a mission. We put our lives in drive to accomplish big things for our Savior. But if we never shift down to neutral, we can zip through life and miss the outpouring of His Spirit. God whispers, Be still, and know that I am God. Neutral!

Neutral! Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from 1 Kings 19 verses 9-12 and 15-18. There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? He replied, I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword.

I am the only one left, and now they're trying to kill me too. The Lord said, Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire.

And after the fire came a gentle whisper. Picking up with verse 15, The Lord said to him, Go back the way you came, and go to the desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. Also anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Mahola to succeed you as prophet.

Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal, and whose mouths have not kissed him. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the privilege of rest. We stop right this moment to remember your great love for us. In Jesus' name, Amen.