A New Day

By: Pastor Johnie Akers     

1 Kings 19:4, “But [Elijah] went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.”  Psychologist and author, Perry Buffington wrote, “Failures take on a life of their own because the brain remembers incomplete tasks or failures longer than any success or completed activity. It’s technically referred to as the ‘Zeigarnik effect.’ When a project or a thought is completed, the brain places it in a special memory. The brain no longer gives the project priority or active working status, and bits and pieces of the achieved situation begin to decay.  But failures have no closure. The brain continues to spin the memory, trying to come up with ways to fix the mess and move it from active to inactive status.”  In our Scripture lesson today, the great prophet Elijah became reclusive.  Although his ministry is marked with incredible successes, the pursuit of the prophet by Ahab and Jezebel has left the man of God isolated and feeling as if he is a failure.  How did God bring closure to Elijah?  Later in 1 Kings 19 He reminded Elijah that he was not alone in his plight.  There were 7,000 other faithful souls who had not succumbed to idolatry; and God also reminded Elijah of the unfulfilled purpose He had for his life.  Simply put, he was not alone and he was not a failure.  Elijah had unfinished business that would finally bring closure to what initially seemed like failure.  There were new kings to anoint and a successor to be chosen—Elisha.  One of the kings Elijah was to anoint, Jehu, would finally close the book on Jezebel—permanently.  Like Elijah, do you feel like a failure today?  Do those haunting memories continue to recycle over and over and over again?  Let me remind you that you are not alone, you are not a failure, and God is not finished with you.  Be reassured, the best part of your life is not behind you, but ahead of you.  Leave the juniper tree behind, and as the door of failure permanently closes, a door of renewed destiny and purpose will open into the light of this new day.

Source:  Perry Buffington, licensed psychologist, author, columnist; “Forgive or Forget,” Universal Press Syndicate