Elijah in the Wilderness

Painting by Lord Frederic Leighton (1830-1896) 

But he (Elijah) went a day's journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.”  1 King 19:4

At my small group bible study not too long ago, we discussed Elijah’s wilderness experience, that part of Elijah’s narrative where he ran for his life from Jezebel who had sworn to kill him if that was the last thing she did. That story has sat with me since. Here’s Elijah, who had just witnessed the spectacular phenomenon of God sending fire from heaven to consume the bull offering set on wood submerged in water, putting to shame the other gods, who in spite of repeated manipulative pleadings by their priests could do nothing to light up their offering set on dry wood. All Elijah had to do was call out to YHWH once, and poof! fire shot down from heaven! Elijah must have felt pretty triumphant, affirmed in his own faith, if not the Israelites’, that YHWH was indeed real and He was powerful beyond measure, and that this great God listened to him. 

Shortly after this mountain top experience, he got wind that Jezebel was out for his life. This big man of God immediately buckled at his knees, cowered, and ran for his life. Granted, Jezebel was one ruthless, brutal queen, but didn’t Elijah know that he himself was one larger-than-life prophet who had the almighty God and His heavenly armies on his side? His fear of Jezebel obviously got the better of him, for off Elijah ran, to the wilderness, sat under a broom tree, felt so sorry for himself that he asked God to take his life. 
 

What struck me first about this story is how gently and kindly God handled him.  If Elijah had bemoaned his fate to me, I would have said, “Come on now Elijah, have you already forgotten what God just did with the fire from heaven?  You couldn’t have witnessed all that and now fret over what a woman could do to you?”  And then I would quote him verses from the Bible like Psalm 56:11 - in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?  Well, good thing Elijah didn’t cry to me but to God!  God did not reprimand him or give him a litany of what it means to trust Him.  Instead God sent an angel to make him a meal!  Doesn’t that just cause you to pause and wonder about this God of Elijah’s?  How gracious and kind and how aware He is not just of the spiritual but the physical and emotional needs of His people.  God’s angel came to bake Elijah a cake!  He made sure Elijah had a good meal and good rest before he was allowed on his long journey to Mt. Horeb to meet God.

I have made the mistake when friends and family come to me to express unhappiness or fear, to jump in with a long lecture about how they should trust God and remember who He is and how well He has taken care of them, etc, etc.  When what I should have done instead was let them express their sorrow, allow them to cry, and make them a special meal or treat them to their favorite restaurant.  No matter how much faith we have, life can get pretty crummy at times.  There are times when we need to remind one another about God’s faithfulness and redemptive power, but I think when fear and sorrow grip us, we should try to give each other the grace to lament, to sob, and to even exaggerate our painful existence.

Which brings me to the next thing I picked up from the wilderness narrative.  After Elijah was well fed and well rested, he took off to Mt. Horeb to meet God.  While at Mt. Horeb, Elijah cried out to God about how he had been zealous for God, how he was the only one left who was faithful while everyone else had forsaken Him.  God again allowed him to lament first, then in a whisper, gave Elijah a list of tasks to accomplish for Him while assuring him that He had 7,000 people who had neither forsaken Him nor succumbed to the worship of the false god Baal.  The common take from this part of the narrative is -- of course Elijah was so crushed and fearful for he didn’t know until then that he was not alone, and that there were all these Israelites who remained faithful to YHWH.  This is what we get when we don’t read the biblical narratives from beginning to end!  For a few chapters before this, we learned that Elijah had run into Obadiah, another faithful man of God, who had told Elijah that he had hid a hundred prophets in caves when Jezebel tried to kill all of YHWH’s prophets.  I am not here trying to implicate Elijah for exaggerating his dilemma, just pointing out that, like Elijah, we often feel forsaken and alone when life gets overwhelming even when we know in reality that that is not the case.   

Hopefully, the next time someone approaches me with her fear, I would remember God’s graciousness and gentleness toward Elijah, and be slow to admonish, quick to listen and empathize, allowing her to exaggerate her fears, seeking first to shore up her strength by  meeting her present physical and emotional needs in offering her some form of “angel food cake!”  

And for all of us, when the Jezebels of this world come after us, let us run to God to hide and weep, He will not spurn us but gently and lovingly restore us like He did with Elijah.

On a side note, we are not told if Jezebel ever caught up with Elijah.  Elijah with renewed strength and assurance carried out what God commanded him to do (there comes a time when wallowing needs to come to an end)  and was duly taken up to heaven in a whirlwind.  Jezebel lived long enough to make life hell for several more people, but died with makeup on and, as prophesied, with her body shredded by dogs!

Cinema Paradiso

Yo Yo Ma, courtesy of the Boston Symphony

Keith Lockhart, courtesy of the Brevard Music Center

Chris Botti,courtesy of chrisbotti.com

Two of my favorite musical artists are Yo-Yo Ma and Keith Lockhart. They are not only incredible musicians (is there ever a doubt about their talents?) but they also serve to bring back delightful memories of family outings when our girls were little.

We first heard Yo-Yo Ma live at Carnegie Hall when Lauren was six. It was an afternoon children's concert that Mr. Ma is in the habit of giving to extend music education to the young. I remember watching Lauren, her big eyes taking it all in, glued to his performance and his easy banter with his young audience. On the way home on the train to Connecticut, music to her parents' ears, she told us that she would like to learn to play the cello like Yo-Yo Ma!

When we lived in Winchester, Massachusetts, we would regularly take the girls to performances by the Boston Pops, with its effervescent conductor Keith Lockhart. His energy (and youth at the time) so captivated our girls' imagination. Those were such memorable family excursions, not only of the performances themselves, but the exploration of the magnificent city as the four of us made our way across town from where we parked our car at the Public Gardens to Symphony Hall. How precious were those family times, and how gracious of God to allow us such happiness.

I now leave you with this soulful rendition of Cinema Paradiso (please click) by Yo-Yo Ma and Chris Botti together with the Boston Pops and conductor Keith Lockhart. Although Chris Botti is not part of our family collective memory, he has become one of my favorite artists, since first hearing him on a PBS special. He has unequivocally altered how I look at the trumpet and jazz! Enjoy!

From Chopin to Saint Saens

About this time last year, our daughter Kathryn delighted us with her senior piano recital. Friends are still raving about how elegantly and passionately she rendered each piece. My favorites from the program are Chopin's Nocturne, Opus 9, No. 1 and Saint-Saens Concerto in G Minor, Opus 22. Her recital and her sister's art show were the highlights of the year for me! Kathryn is off to college now; I so miss hearing her daily practice on the piano.

Art Show

Around this time last year, our daughter Lauren delighted us with a well-crafted presentation of her work at her senior art show at Washington University in St. Louis. I was so impressed by how poised she was as she presented to a crowded auditorium. Time flies...can't believe it has been nearly a year!! That was one of our family's highlights of the year.

Here are the links to her website and blog. Enjoy!

Banana Cream Shasta Daisies

Aren't these daisies absolutely gorgeous? It was a beautiful weekend in Dallas. I bought some plants and filled the pots in our backyard. These Banana Cream Shasta daisies are by far my favorites! They are perennials; so hopefully with some tlc, they will bloom not only through the spring and summer, but continue to thrive year after year.