Author: Dwight Clough

"You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there." — 1 Kings 17:4God never runs out of options. When our backs are up against the wall, He has wonderful creative alternatives. Stop and think about it. How many times in history have ravens brought meals to hungry people? As far as I know, it only happened once. Another time when people were hungry, God rained down manna and quail. Another time, He split open loaves and fish. Another time he made the flour and oil jars bottomless. And then, I know of stories…

"Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan." — 1 Kings 17:3God is practical. He steps into our lives as they really are. The stuff of God’s leading consists of parking places and apple pies, of budget line items and a walk along the beach. In this passage, God’s leading to Elijah consisted of directions and a destination, of protection and a plan.God’s leading in the practical matters of this life give us reasonable hope that He will continue to be the same God who leads us into all His promises that we cannot…

Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah: "Leave here …" — 1 Kings 17:2-3aThis is how we discover God: He tells us to do something that makes no sense to the flesh (the part of us that still embraces sin or lies), we do it, and then He shows us the next step. Elijah needed to deliver his message to Ahab before he would learn any further details about the plan of God, and, ultimately, about God Himself.God reveals Himself to us in steps. He invites us to take His hand, we take it, and He leads us…

Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead said to [King] Ahab, "As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word." — 1 Kings 17:1I have always admired Elijah. He had guts. I imagine that Elijah made this announcement on an afternoon dark with clouds, that his words were punctuated with thunder and lightning, and that everyone laughed as Ahab dismissed him as a crackpot who somehow got by the palace guard. I don’t know, of course, but that’s what I picture.…

May He give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the LORD grant all your requests. — Psalm 20:4-5I love Psalm 20:1-5. I sign my books with this blessing because I believe it so much reflects the heart of God. But this passage does raise questions. If God is so interested in our success, why does success seem to elude so many people? I would like to suggest to you that God does…

… and provide for those who grieve in Zion — to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of His splendor. — Isaiah 61:3My favorite wildflower is the Black-Eyed Susan. It reminds me, in a way, of a young woman, dressed in a scarf and plain clothes, hard at work on the farm, yet radiating the kind of quiet beauty that makes a young…

"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." — Isaiah 1:18God may be absolutely holy, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that holiness is unreasonable. It is not. God is seeking you. Even if Jesus is your Lord and Savior, God is still seeking you. A good husband doesn’t stop courting his wife even after they say, "I do." God is seeking you, and He has an offer for you that is perfectly reasonable. The next step in your journey with God is a step…

I go to prepare a place for you … — John 14:2Jesus tells us that He is preparing a place for us. But I would like to suggest that He is also preparing a place for Himself.Most of us would like a bigger house. We sure would. It seems like our house can barely contain our family of six, our school, work and ministry. We may imagine heaven as the bigger, fancier house that we want. And we may be right in part. But let me suggest another possibility.Heaven is a bigger house for God.Where does God live? He lives…

Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" — Mark 9:7 NIV Every Christian has a line inside his or her heart. On one side of the line we have said "yes" to Jesus. On the other side, we haven’t yet said "yes." This is good news, because that means that every day will be an adventure with God.Why haven’t we said "yes"? Because we believe something bad will happen if we do. In it’s classic form, we have, "God, you can do anything…

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. — 2 Corinthians 3:18Let’s do some spiritual math.real Jesus + real you = real changereal Jesus + false you = performance without transformationfalse Jesus + real you = deception and miseryfalse Jesus + false you = deep deceptionWhat can we conclude from these formulas?1. It doesn’t pay to hide from God.2. Sometimes, the most spiritual thing you can do is get honest with yourself.3. When it comes to Jesus, it pays…