1 Kings 18-19

After a long time, the Lord speaks to Elijah and tells him to present himself before Ahab. Then Elijah confronts the prophets of Baal and Asherah. He puts before them a challenge to see whose God is real. Of course, Elijah wins. After this the people of Israel bow down and worship God, and then kill the prophets. Afterward, Elijah prays for rain, which comes. Once Jezebel gets word of what happened, this puts fear in Elijah who then runs for his life.

There is a lot we can say about the highs and lows of Elijah’s faith, as that is something we can all relate to. But, the words of Ahab and then Elijah’s response in 1 Kings 18:18 should not be overlooked. Often, when we are in sin and being disciplined by the Lord, we want to blame everyone but ourselves. We complain that our life is so miserable and bad, not recognizing that it is because of our own actions. Israel faced drought and famine because of Ahab’s sin and failure to worship the Lord. We suffer discipline because of our sins. And like Israel, the only real solution is to return to the Lord and repent.

How often have you tried to shift blame for your sin’s consequences?