We think we need a miracle to confirm God’s presence. We don’t. We need to slow down and listen. We need to drink deep of the quiet voice of God in the Scriptures, often, slowly, reflectively, and thoughtfully. 

Most of us would love to have a clear, personal experience of God. Wouldn’t it be great to see a vision, or be visited by an angel, or to have some miracle happen in front of us? We’d all like the spectacular things we see sometimes in the Bible to happen to us. There are streams of Christianity that actively aim for these kinds of experiences, trying to find some special feeling of God and powerful demonstration of his power.

Wanting the spectacular and miraculous fits in with our overachieving and hardworking lifestyles. We want our movies fast and interesting, and if that article on the web doesn’t grab our attention in the first few sentences, we’ll move on. We want the quick and memorable.

Elijah the prophet lived a life where he had seen more demonstration of God’s power than almost anyone else ever. He had prayed, and God stopped the rain for three years. He saw a jar of oil never run out. He was involved in a child being raised from the dead. And, of course, atop Mt Carmel he saw fire fall from heaven and rain come after prayer. Elijah was a man who knew what the spectacular and miraculous was like. And yet, in chapter 19, he was depressed. In his needy state, God led him to Mt Horeb, where he revealed himself like this:

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