“Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” (1 Kings 18:36-37)

This prayer, uttered by Elijah on Mount Carmel is a portrait of raw faith in the power of God, and the potential we have as believers to tap into the miraculous. In response, God sent fire from heaven which consumed not only the sacrifice, but utterly licked up all the water in the surrounding trench.  The spectators were so awestruck, they immediately turned on the false prophets they had been supporting and began to proclaim the Lord as God.

Not all prayers or the related answers are as dramatic or theatrical.  However, even a quiet response doesn’t diminish the potency of reaching out to the Creator of Heaven and earth and experiencing His divine intervention in our lives. In particular, God is glorified when we as His children openly believe for a public demonstration of His sovereignty.

I recently found myself in the midst of a situation that could only be described as a thorn in my side.  I’d prayed about it in private, but not much seemed to change; if anything, things seemed to deteriorate.  Finally, I committed the situation to God in public along with someone else experiencing the same frustration.  Before the end of that day, we witnessed a remarkable turnaround that was beyond anything we could have expected. God showed Himself strong on our behalf and was glorified in the process – Halleluyah!

He is still the God who answers by fire – whether literal or spiritual.  This week and going forward, let us accept the challenge to proclaim Him as such and trust Him to demonstrate to everyone around us that the Lord is God indeed.

Be blessed,

R

Image Attribution:

http://kevinlaewing.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-god-that-answers-by-fire.html