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And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.”                                                                        --1 Kings 19:4 Maybe you feel like Elijah today. In our Scripture verse above, he was so depressed and distraught that he actually prayed that God would take his life! What set Elijah up for such depression? What sets you up for emotional turmoil? Depression can set in after a great spiritual high. Depression hit Elijah after the mountaintop experience recorded in 1 Kings 18, when he stood against the prophets of Baal. Right after he did this, the bottom fell out! Elijah fell off his spiritual perch because like you and me, he was most vulnerable after great victory. That’s why the Bible says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). After the spiritual victory, Elijah was physically, emotionally, and spiritually drained. So when word came that Jezebel the queen wanted him dead, he ran for his life. And here’s the key: Elijah took his eyes off God. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that God told him to run. Elijah took off on his own. Don’t take your eyes off of God for a second. Maybe you’ve experience spiritual victory time and time again. Don’t let your guard down and begin acting on your own. Trust God every step of the way. If you’ve experienced a spiritual high, remember that you’re a target for Satan.

Faith in a Time of Falling Away

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”
2 Thessalonians 2:2–4

One of the topics of greatest interest to many Christians is prophecy and end time events. They want to know what to expect in the days ahead. Of course this interest is not new. The last question the disciples asked Jesus before He returned to Heaven was about His plan for the future: “When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6).
The Bible makes it clear that God does not intend for us to know the exact timing of future events, but instead be ready for the return of the Lord at any moment. It also tells us a great deal about what to expect as we wait for that day. Scripture says that the last days will see an increase in sinful activity, and there will be a decrease in genuine faith. Many who once professed to believe will fall away, while others redefine faith so that it no longer holds any real meaning.
Our task is to be faithful. That is true no matter who around us may stop following God. As long as our eyes are on Jesus and our confidence in the Word of God is strong, we will not be numbered among those who fall away.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

Our faith depends on God alone, and we should not allow the apostasy of others to weaken it.