We welcome you to Stone's Hill today!

A typical Stone's Hill service has:

* music (so feel free to sing out);

* some announcements (things that are upcoming that you can be a part of);

* a message out of the Bible (God speaks to us through his Word);

* and an opportunity for you to respond to the message (either immediately in the case of a decision that needs to be made OR in the future as you live out the message in your daily life.)

So relax and enjoy your morning! We're so glad you are here!

MESSAGE TEXT
1 Kings 19:1-21
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Elijah is many things in our Fed by Ravens series. Elijah is a prophet, a fugitive, a raven-enthusiast, a miracle-worker, a revivalist, a disciple-maker, a Messianic-forerunner, a trash-talker, a prayer-warrior and a cross-country runner that could outrun chariots. But today, he is disillusioned servant. James 5:17 says Elijah was a human being, even as we are. With all of Elijah’s exploits, you might would have questioned that. But in our passage today, you will totally believe it. We have had the public ecstasy, now we get the private agony.
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BACKGROUND
Elijah had done absolutely everything he could possibly do. The nation’s leaders were not only unshaken, they weren’t even fazed. They weren’t even impressed, and the people didn’t rise up. There’s no coup d’état. There’s not even anybody with placards, or demonstrators, saying, “We want the Lord back.” Nothing has happened. The people are supposed to rise up in unified commitment to God. Just hours earlier, Elijah had won a complete triumph. His ministry had been vindicated per his prayer request in 18:36. His enemies had been defeated on Mt Carmel in a great display of God’s power. God actually acted outside of the temple and that messed with everybody’s heads. And the long drought was broken after a time of intense intercessory prayer for the nation. But now, Elijah is in trouble. “I went through all that effort for this? What’s the point? What’s the use, no matter what good you do, what victory you win, nothing changes. If they don’t repent after God revealed his presence 50 miles from the temple, they never will.”
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QUESTION
Have you ever been afraid and in trouble? Have you ever said to God “I’ve had enough”? Did you know that even spiritual leaders and prophets get discouraged and tired and fearful? Just a cursory reading of this passage, and we get a pretty good idea of how Elijah got to this dark place in his life. Can I just say that whether you are tempted to leave your spouse, your job, or this life, there is hope in this story. God deals with Elijah with amazing grace and patience as he works through burnout in his life.
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DEFINITION
The term burnout was coined by rocket scientists to describe shutting down a jet or rocket engine by exhausting or shutting off its fuel. Dr. Herbert J. Freudenberg, in his 1974 book Burnout: The High Cost of High Achievement, was the first psychologist to use this term. He defined burnout as "the extinction of motivation or incentive, especially where one's devotion to a cause or relationship fails to produce the desired results."
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APPLICATION
Trouble and burnout will find you and there are some things that alert you to its arrival. Physical exhaustion. Constant fatigue, muscle aches, and frequent illnesses. Emotional detachment. Feeling numb, disconnected, or cynical. Spiritual strain as in difficulty connecting with God, feeling distant or unmotivated in spiritual disciplines. Loss of joy in service where serving feels burdensome rather than fulfilling.
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PROPOSITION
Sometimes we long for God to reveal himself to us in powerful and dramatic ways. So did Elijah. But he learned that God makes himself known to us not only with dramatic demonstrations but also by means of gentle whispers (1 Kings 19:12). We’re going to look at GENTLE WHISPERS from 1 Kings 19 to move you through the spiritual wilderness and to convince you that you are not alone. Joey’s Trouble, Christ’s Touch, and God’s Grace (see slide). We can sort of trace the course of Elijah’s troubles and our troubles in this chapter. 1 Kings 19 is our battle fatigue prevention guide.
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MESSAGE TALKING POINTS
Our troubles... God Understands what you Need
-----Expectations – they’re unfulfilled
-----Opposition – someone or something works against us
-----Isolation – we’re all alone
-----Emotions – everything fades to black
-----Guilt – so much unfulfilled responsibility
-----Exhaustion – fatigue makes cowards of everybody
-----Self-pity – our own still small voice
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Christ’s Touch... God Understands Who you Need
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God's grace... God Understands When you Need It
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CLOSING
Invitation: The earthquake, wind, and the fire are the tokens of God’s judgment. The still small voice is the gentleness of his grace. Elijah thinks that judgment is the main thing the world needs. Why is it that the earthquake, wind, and fire did not destroy Elijah? Because, you see, the earthquake … Jesus was the one who was shaken. Jesus was the one who got the fire. Jesus was the one who inherited the wind. Jesus got all that. The reason the still small voice was there for Elijah and us, the reason grace was there, is because Jesus took the judgment. If there is anybody here who is going through deep waters, anyone here who feels like God is shaking them, Jesus is the One who was really shaken so you could stand. Jesus is the One who took the real fire. If you take hold of him, you’ll pass through the fire. He was the One burned. You’ll pass through the shaking.

God is teaching Elijah the gospel. What is the gospel? Here’s the gospel. The gospel is you’re more sinful than you ever dared believe, but you’re more loved and accepted in Christ than you ever dared hope. Jesus says “Get up… the journey is too much for you alone.”