The Prophet Elijah: Depression

I Kings 19:1-10

Many people are under the impression that once you become a Christian, most, if not all, of your problems go away. There is absolutely no scripture to support this view. As a matter of fact, we see example after example of faithful servants of God facing problem after problem in their lives. One such example is Elijah and a bout with depression found in I Kings chapter 19.

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And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.” And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again. And the angel of the LORD came back the second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you." So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  So he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

I Kings 19:1-10

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Elijah had just come off of perhaps the pinnacle of his ministry. He had called down fire from Heaven to consume a sacrifice in a contest with 450 prophets of Baal. Then, the 450 prophets of Baal had been killed. Then, he prayed and ended a 3.5 year drought. All of this occurred in a single day, and he had shown that God was still God, and Baal was not a god. For this great victory, the queen decided she wanted to kill him. So, Elijah ran into the wilderness and hid.

Elijah did several things that put him into this emotional slump. First, he isolated. He ran away from people and hid in a cave. Second, he told himself that he was all alone and that there was no one else like him (no one who could understand what he was going through). Third, he prayed to die. Fourth, he slept. If you have ever struggled with depression, you probably recognize this pattern. From the outside looking in, we may wonder why Elijah was depressed. How could he have gone from such a great victory to feeling defeated and wanting to die? He would seem like he should have felt brave enough to walk right into the palace, stick his tongue out at Jezebel and say "You can't touch me". I'm not saying he should have done that, but he just saw God do a might work through him; what happened to his faith? It is actually coming off of victories that we often struggle with depression. Elijah was not unique in this.

What was the solution? First, he ate. This strengthened his physical body and mind. Then he slept again. He ate again, and he slept again. The process took a period of 40 days. Then, Elijah did something else, he poured his heart out to God. He complained. Just as our physical bodies need nourishment and rest, so do our spirits. The rest for our spirit comes from spending time with God. Elijah stopped isolating and internalizing his problems and feelings. He poured all that hurt out at the feet of Jesus in prayer.

Here are a few takeaways from this story.

1. Faithful service to God was not a cure-all from all of life's problems

2. The solution was not a quick one

3. God didn't simply tell Elijah to "Get over it".

4. There was care (physical) and compassion from God towards Elijah

5. It was in experiencing God's presence, love, and truth that Elijah came out of his depression.

6. Elijah went back to work

When we have struggles, there are times when we absolutely need to get away from people. However, we do not need to lock ourselves away from God. Our help comes from God. It is that help, that presence, that hope that equips the Christian to deal with depression better than the non-Christian.

Father, I thank You for including this story in Your word. When we get depressed we often feel like no one could ever understand. We tell ourselves that we are all alone. You tell us that we are not alone. There are others who have the same struggles. Just as You have been there for them, so You are here for us as well!

Picture taken from: https://www.thedoganddragon.com/store/p84/Elijah_in_the_Wilderness.html