Same God

The Bible tells us that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It can be a hard truth to wrap our minds around because we’re often surrounded by people who are unpredictable, disloyal, and undependable. But God is always good, always compassionate, and always faithful. His love never fades. Because He is unchanging, we can have full confidence in Him–just like Elijah did.

The prophet Elijah had the utmost confidence in God. Even when everyone around him chose to worship the false god, Baal, Elijah’s faith in God never wavered. In fact, he was so sure he knew God’s character and power that he challenged the 450 priests of Baal in order to prove to them that God is real. Elijah asked for two bulls to be prepared for sacrifice, and they agreed that whoever’s god set their altar on fire would be declared the one true God.

The priests called on Baal from morning til night. They shouted, danced, and cut themselves with swords, but no one answered. Elijah was so confident in God that he taunted the priests. He told them to shout louder because perhaps Baal was deep in thought, busy, or traveling. Maybe he was asleep and needed to be woken up! Nothing the priests did worked.

When it was finally Elijah’s turn, he confidently doused the entire altar with so much water that it filled the surrounding trench. The wood was so soaked that there was no reason it should catch fire. But Elijah prayed for God to answer him–not for personal gain or notoriety–but so that the people would believe in God and turn back to Him. As soon as Elijah had finished praying, the altar went up in such intense flames that even the water filling the trench disappeared.

Elijah knew God intimately. He knew what he was called to do, and he knew God would come through no matter how unlikely it seemed. Elijah’s confidence had nothing to do with himself and everything to do with his belief in a limitless, faithful God.

Like the misguided priests, we’ve all had moments when we’ve put our faith in the wrong things to make us feel more confident. Things that promise power, peace, and love but leave us feeling empty. The reality is that other people will let us down, and anything other than God will always fall short.

Nothing will ever satisfy you like your relationship with God. He is your redeemer, your savior, your refuge, and your strength. Because of who He is, you are an overcomer, His chosen one, and the light of the world. Following God doesn’t mean everything will turn out exactly as you’d like, but you can trust that He is working all things for your good. He is everything you’ll ever need to live courageously. You can walk in confidence because God is who He says He is. He will always come through for you, and that’ll never change.

Action Step: Who or what do you depend on to boost your confidence? What idols are you putting your faith in that are keeping you from living a life of boldness for God? Spend some time in prayer, asking God to reveal the answers to these questions to you.