DAY 1: Start With Bread and Sleep
Out of the Cave: Five Days of Learning to Be Quiet With God
Church, on Sunday we followed Elijah from the fire on Mount Carmel to a cave on Mount Horeb. He was worn out and scared, and he was sure he was the only one left. God fed him and let him sleep. He listened to Elijah. Then, after the wind and the earthquake and the fire, “there was the sound of a gentle whisper” (1 Kings 19:12).
Some translations say a still small voice. Others say a sound of thin silence. The Hebrew word demamah has to do with stillness or quiet. It doesn’t mean God only speaks in silence, and it isn’t a secret code. God has spoken clearly in his Word and in Jesus. But a lot of us have filled every quiet minute, and we rarely stop long enough to pay attention to him.
This week is a place to start wading in. Each day has a short reading, a few thoughts, and a quiet practice that grows a little each day, from one minute to about five. If five minutes is too much right now, stay with a shorter time. There is room on the page to write. If nothing comes to mind in the quiet, you haven’t failed. You spent time with God, and that matters.
Keep the Pray again alarm from last week. When it goes off, put your phone on Do Not Disturb and turn it face down. Words in quotation marks are from the New Living Translation. Everything else is my summary.
Get quiet enough to hear God. Then be brave enough to obey him.
Pastor Daniel
__________________________________________
DAY 1: Start With Bread and Sleep
READ SLOWLY - 1 Kings 19:1 - 8 and Matthew 11:28 - 30
Elijah ran a full day into the wilderness, sat under a broom tree, and asked God to let him die. “I have had enough, LORD” (1 Kings 19:4).
Look at what God does first. He doesn’t give Elijah a lesson. He lets him sleep. An angel wakes him with bread and water, and Elijah lies down again. The second time the angel says, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you” (1 Kings 19:7).
God cared about Elijah’s body. He still cares about yours. Some of us think the most spiritual thing we can do is push harder. Sometimes the faithful thing is to eat a real meal, go to bed on time, or call the doctor.
A nap won’t cure depression, and I’m not saying it will. If you are carrying something heavy, getting help from a counselor or a doctor is not a lack of faith. Receiving that care can be a faithful next step.
Jesus says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). He doesn’t ask tired people to clean up first. He asks them to come.
God started with Elijah’s body before he talked about his calling.
BE QUIET
• Set a timer for two minutes. Sit somewhere comfortable and take a few slow breaths.
• Read Matthew 11:28 once, slowly. Then just sit with Jesus. You don’t have to say anything.
• If your mind wanders to your to do list, that’s normal. Have a paper to write them down and move themyou’re your plate or just mentally push them aside. Come back to the words of Jesus, Come to me.
Like Elijah, what does my body need from me today? What would God tell me to tend to physically?
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______________________________________________________________
YOUR NEXT STEP
Pick one simple thing that cares for your body today. Eat lunch away from a screen. Go to bed thirty minutes earlier. Take a short walk. Make the appointment you’ve been putting off.
PRAY
Jesus, I’m tired. Thank you that you don’t shame me for that. I’m coming to you the way I am. Show me how to rest today. Amen.
Church, on Sunday we followed Elijah from the fire on Mount Carmel to a cave on Mount Horeb. He was worn out and scared, and he was sure he was the only one left. God fed him and let him sleep. He listened to Elijah. Then, after the wind and the earthquake and the fire, “there was the sound of a gentle whisper” (1 Kings 19:12).
Some translations say a still small voice. Others say a sound of thin silence. The Hebrew word demamah has to do with stillness or quiet. It doesn’t mean God only speaks in silence, and it isn’t a secret code. God has spoken clearly in his Word and in Jesus. But a lot of us have filled every quiet minute, and we rarely stop long enough to pay attention to him.
This week is a place to start wading in. Each day has a short reading, a few thoughts, and a quiet practice that grows a little each day, from one minute to about five. If five minutes is too much right now, stay with a shorter time. There is room on the page to write. If nothing comes to mind in the quiet, you haven’t failed. You spent time with God, and that matters.
Keep the Pray again alarm from last week. When it goes off, put your phone on Do Not Disturb and turn it face down. Words in quotation marks are from the New Living Translation. Everything else is my summary.
Get quiet enough to hear God. Then be brave enough to obey him.
Pastor Daniel
__________________________________________
DAY 1: Start With Bread and Sleep
READ SLOWLY - 1 Kings 19:1 - 8 and Matthew 11:28 - 30
Elijah ran a full day into the wilderness, sat under a broom tree, and asked God to let him die. “I have had enough, LORD” (1 Kings 19:4).
Look at what God does first. He doesn’t give Elijah a lesson. He lets him sleep. An angel wakes him with bread and water, and Elijah lies down again. The second time the angel says, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you” (1 Kings 19:7).
God cared about Elijah’s body. He still cares about yours. Some of us think the most spiritual thing we can do is push harder. Sometimes the faithful thing is to eat a real meal, go to bed on time, or call the doctor.
A nap won’t cure depression, and I’m not saying it will. If you are carrying something heavy, getting help from a counselor or a doctor is not a lack of faith. Receiving that care can be a faithful next step.
Jesus says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). He doesn’t ask tired people to clean up first. He asks them to come.
God started with Elijah’s body before he talked about his calling.
BE QUIET
• Set a timer for two minutes. Sit somewhere comfortable and take a few slow breaths.
• Read Matthew 11:28 once, slowly. Then just sit with Jesus. You don’t have to say anything.
• If your mind wanders to your to do list, that’s normal. Have a paper to write them down and move themyou’re your plate or just mentally push them aside. Come back to the words of Jesus, Come to me.
Like Elijah, what does my body need from me today? What would God tell me to tend to physically?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
YOUR NEXT STEP
Pick one simple thing that cares for your body today. Eat lunch away from a screen. Go to bed thirty minutes earlier. Take a short walk. Make the appointment you’ve been putting off.
PRAY
Jesus, I’m tired. Thank you that you don’t shame me for that. I’m coming to you the way I am. Show me how to rest today. Amen.
Posted in Daily Devotional