Each day during the month of March we will be sharing a devotional from a booklet written by Steve Love. Steve is a member of Canton First and a Traumatic Brain Injury survivor. If you would like a complete PDF of this devotional, it can be downloaded here.
Day 3
1 Kings 19:3b -9 (New International Version)
He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. 7 The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.
Elijah had just completed the challenge on Mount Carmel with the prophets of Baal to put to rest the question who God was truly. Was the true God the God of Elijah or Baal the god who King Ahab and Queen Jezebel served? The nation of Israel would have no doubts about who was truly God by the end of the contest between the God and Baal. Even though God won that day, Jezebel still planned to end Elijah’s life.
Elijah was tired from the events of the day. He was drained physically, mentally, and spiritually. He was afraid for his life. He knew all too well what Jezebel was capable of. In our scripture today we see that God took the time to allow His Caregiver to the nation of Israel the down time he needed. God fed him, allowed him to sleep, and gave him the time he needed to be spiritually renewed.
The caregivers and family of a person with a brain injury do a wonderful job helping us live a meaningful life. They work hard seeing to our need’s day after day, but at what cost to them? Their life rotates around the needs of the person with a brain injury. Even when they are at work, shopping, or doing the many tasks of the home and family, they can not leave the worry and burden they are carrying for the person with a brain injury.
We need to make sure our loved caregivers and family members take quality time away from us. They need time to be renewed physically, mentally, and spiritually. My wife is a wonderful caregiver. She does get tired of dealing with the problems which affect the family and me because of my injuries. I know she needs time away from me. She needs time for herself to help her grow as a person. She needs to take the time for herself, for her church, other family members, and to spend time alone with God. When she takes the time to fulfill these needs in her life, she becomes a better wife and caregiver. God helped Elijah by giving him down time. In the same way, our caregivers need down time away from us.
Pray and thank God for the caregivers we have in our life.
Pray and thank God for the members of our families.
Pray and ask God to help us make sure our caregivers and family members take the time they need to help them be the person God wants them to be.