Sound of a Gentle Blowing

1 King 19:12,13

After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing.

When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave And behold, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

* The backdrop of this scene is at Mt. Horeb after Elijah fled from Jezebel's threat of hunting him down. Elijah was completely discouraged because he feels he is the only God's person left behind and is about to be extinct. Then the word of the LORD visited in the midst of the situation asking Elijah, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

Didn't God already know why Elijah was there to begin with?

Yet You Are Holy

Psalm 22:2,3

  my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer;
       And by night, but I have no rest.
  Yet You are holy,
       O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel

*
Crying out to God day and night is not easy or fun, but making worse is not knowing how long to do it for. Why is God silent? Is He cruel? Is He ignoring me? Am I doing anything wrong? What's going on?

At this point, God seems to be watching me as I would carefully observe my 2-year old child whether s/he will willing do and say the right thing or not in his/her own "defining moment." In my eyes, it's a win-win situation -- if my child gets it right, then it puts joy in my heart and excited to see him/her grow into the next phase of maturity; if doesn't get it yet, then it's time to be patient and continue with the grooming and training. However, in the child's eyes, it may seem like a lose-lose situation where it the training going on forever.

Switch gears, I am now the child of God thinking what I just described my own child would feel as well as the author of this Psalm felt many years ago. What's encouraging about this passage is the fact that regardless of what he felt, the author acknowledged God as: You are holy! If my own child, even with the feeling I described above, says to me: "Regardless of what I feel about you thank you, Dad, for continuing to train me up to be a matured person," that would just make my day.

Dear God, may the confession out of my mouth exemplify verse 3 -- Yet You are holy.