June 25, 2026; 1 Kings 19

Daily Dose of Hope June 25, 2026   Scripture:  1 Kings 19   Prayer: Holy God, We come before you this morning in awe of your blessings and love.  Thank you, Lord, for the ways you continue to guide our lives.  Lord, we want more intimacy with you.  We are desperate to know you better.  In these next few moments of silence, Jesus, please speak to us.  We need to hear your voice...  In Your Name, Amen.   Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that complements the New Hope daily Bible reading plan.  This summer, we are working our way through the Old Testament books of 1 & 2 Kings.  Today's reading is 1 Kings 19. This is a great chapter.  Elijah has been doing God's work and things have gotten really hard and really scary.  After he kills the prophets of Baal, Ahab's wife, Jezebel, decides that Elijah needs the same fate.  This is kind of the last draw for him.  He sits down and tells God that he wants to die.  Enough is enough.  He is tired and depressed.  Maybe you have been there.     But what I love is how God cares for Elijah.  He sends an angel who makes sure that Elijah has food, drink and sleep.  Then, he instructs Elijah that its time he mentors a younger prophet.  He tells him exactly where to go and what to do.  Now, Elisha will come on the scene and provide the support and succession plan that Elijah needs.  When we do God's work, every one of us needs to be sure we are taking care of our physical, emotional, and spiritual needs.  How easy it is to give, give, give, and work, work, work, without taking time for Sabbath and self-care.  Why do pastors burn out so quickly?  Why do some churches have such a problem with turnover?  Because this is not easy work.  In ministry, you give of yourself.  You can feel isolated.  You may deal with a lot of criticism and complaining.  While most of us who make ministry our profession don't get death threats like Elijah, the stress is heavy.  I see this in ministry volunteers as well.  God knew exactly what Elijah needed and he knows what we need.  Rest is huge – Sabbath is essential.  It's actually a commandment, but it's one we too often ignore.  We would never think of ignoring the other commandments, but Sabbath seems to be something we rationalize away.  We can't – we weren't designed to constantly work.  Taking care of our physical bodies and our emotions is also critical.  And what about our spiritual disciplines?  Ministry without abiding with Jesus is not really ministry, it's just doing tasks.  That's a real recipe for burn-out! I also think it's important to think succession plan.  Elijah knew it was time to train up a successor.  None of us are so important that we should think the church or the Kingdom can't get by without us.  It was never about us in the first place!  It's always been about Jesus.  We can all be replaced and it's our job as a leader to find someone to apprentice, to guide, and to mentor.  More on Elijah, Elisha, and Ahab tomorrow. Blessings, Pastor Vicki