THERE
“And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.” I Kings 17:4, 9
Elijah had delivered the message of God’s judgment to Ahab, the wicked king of Israel. There would be no rain until God’s man gave the word. God then instructed Elijah to hide himself by the brook Cherith. The ravens would feed him “there.” After a while, the brook dried up because there was no rain. Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah that he should move to Zarephath, for God had a widow woman “there” to sustain him.
The word there reminds us us of the importance of being where God wants us to be. The ravens were commanded to feed Elijah by the brook Cherith. Had Elijah not been “there,” he would have missed out on God’s provision. The Lord then directed the prophet to go to Zarephath because a widow was to sustain him “there.” The only conclusion we can draw from this is that Elijah would have to be “there” for him to receive the blessing and provision that God had arranged for him.
Too many of God’s people are very casual about His will. They act as if God’s will is so vague and general that they can expect His blessing and provision anywhere they might choose to be. The truth is that God has a specific place for us to be if we hope to enjoy His richest blessings for our lives. It would have been very foolish for Jonah to expect God to bless him when he was traveling to Tarshish, deliberately running from God’s will. Imagine if Elijah had said, “I’m no longer happy by the brook Cherith. I think I shall move to another place.” God would not have been obligated to supply all of his needs if he were away from the place God commanded him to be.
We should not assume that it is any different with us. If we want to be where God’s best blessing is for us, we ought to be “there,” where He has commanded us to be. This would include being in the occupation God has chosen, being in the church God commanded, being in the ministry of God’s selection, etc. God said to Elijah, “I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.” If we expect to enjoy God’s blessing and provision, we should be certain we are in the place He wants us to be, and stay “there.”