Bethany Community Church

Teacher: Peter Reid, August 30, 2009.

Elijah went from vindicating God before the priests and worshippers of Baal to running for his life, full of despair.  It is not unusual for believers to experience darkness in times of fruitfulness.  The question we must ask is how we use those time to grow in fellowship with Christ, and to gain new insights into who God is and what his desires are for us.

Discussion Questions:
Nancy Eckardt

1. Can you think of a time when you have been hesitant to be honest about where you are at for fear of casting your Christian faith in an inaccurate light?

2. Can you think of a time of loneliness and discouragement in your life that immediately followed a powerful, victorious experience?  What triggered the discouragement?

3. Can you think of a time when God has done something in a way that challenges the wisdom of the wise?  Do you see this as an exception to his ways or the rule?

4. When have you been tempted to put your faith on auto-pilot?

5. In his despair, Elijah asked God to take his life.  Have you ever asked God to do something that in retrospect you are grateful he didn’t?

6. What expectations do we put on ourselves or our leaders regarding their well-being?  What does well-being look like to you?

7. What have you been able to see during times of darkness?  What emotions do you associate with darkness?

8. Read 2 Cor. 4:6  Light shall shine out of darkness.  When have you experienced God’s light-filled presence in the midst of darkness?

9. Read Isa. 42:3.  How have you experienced God holding onto you?  How does this verse encourage you?

10. God fed Elijah twice to confirm to him that He was sufficient for him.   In what ways right now do you need to trust in God’s sufficiency alone?

11. Forty is number that symbolizes God’s testing and God’s discipline.  Elijah didn’t think that God was enough and learned during this time.  Can you think of a lesson about God that took a long time for you to believe?

12. Can you think of a time when God did not accomplish his purpose in the way you expected or hoped?  How have changes in your hopes and dreams over the years affected your faith in God?

13. If God whispered to you, what would you want to hear?

14. What does fruitfulness look like to you?  How would your outlook change if you were more concerned about the source of your fruitfulness than the fruit itself?