Unflinching

The deafening noise stopped.  The prophets of Baal had given all they had and still, no fire.  They were beaten and exhausted.  For hours they had danced and pleaded by their sacrifice.  They cut themselves and pulled their hair out.  They lay prostrate on the altar, as if they were living sacrifices, but to no avail.

Then it was the Lords turn.  Silently Elijah rebuilt God's altar.  There he bowed his head and prayed....

Wait!  Wait just one minute....  He bowed down in front of the Lords altar?

It is reasonable for the prophets of Baal to dance and cut themselves by their altar.  It is even acceptable for them to lay their bleeding bodies down like living sacrifices.  It is O.K. for them to do that because Baal is no god.  He will not answer by fire.  They cannot be burned near Baal's altar.  But the Lord, He is God and Elijah knowing that knelt down right in front of His altar.

Did Elijah stop to think about what God's fire did at Sodom?  Did he forget that the top of Mount Sinai was engulfed by God's fire and the people were terrified?  Maybe he thought the Lord would consume the sacrifice by lighting it with a stick, like was done for Gideon?  I dont know what Elijah thought about the fire, but I do know his main concern was glorifying God.  So quietly, he raised his hands toward heaven and asked the Lord to send fire.  It came.  Like atomic lasers, streams of lightning poured out from heaven eating up the sacrifice, the wood, the altar, the water and the earth underneath it; and all the while it was just inches from Elijah's face, yet he did not flinch!  With arms open toward heaven He trusted the God of the fire to protect him.

I pray for fire...you do too.  We ask God to cleanse our hearts. He does this with fire.  We beg for the wayward to repent.  They do because of the fire.  Every day we ask God to send us fire, but when it comes, we run.  We fear the intensity and turn from the heat.  We shield our eyes from the light and cower in its presence.

What if we simply yielded to the fire starter?  What if we stood in His presence and reveled in the cleansing stream?  What if we were more invested in God's glory than in our safety?  Then fire could rain all around us and we would not flinch.  Like Elijah we could breath deeply of the warmth and bask in its light and stand up after everything is consumed and praise God.