5 Things To Remember When You’re Running On Empty | I Guess I Just Feel Like | Pastor Adam Bishop

Elijah’s story starts with God doing some absolutely remarkable things. God feeds him through ravens, provides for a widow through oil and flour that do not run out, raises her son from the dead, and sends fire from heaven against the prophets of Baal. The power of the Lord even comes on Elijah so that he outruns Ahab’s chariot all the way to Jezreel.

First Kings 19 then shows a very different picture. Elijah, who had just stared down 450 false prophets, receives a threat from Jezebel, runs into the wilderness, sits under a broom bush, and asks God to take his life. Elijah had not suddenly become faithless or useless. Elijah had gotten depleted. He was running on empty.

Elijah’s reaction shows that normal pressure can produce an overreaction when capacity is gone. A job, a difficult conversation, a text message, a child’s behavior, or a spouse’s comment may not be the whole reason for the reaction. The empty tank may be driving more than the situation itself. God’s work can sometimes be the very thing that leaves a person exhausted, because obedience carries weight that was never meant to be carried alone.

Elijah’s words under the tree also warn against permanent conclusions from a depleted perspective. Elijah says he is the only one left, but God tells him there are 7,000 others who have not bowed to Baal. Exhaustion narrows the view. A person under the bush cannot see the whole story, so quitting the job, quitting the team, quitting the marriage, or making major decisions can wait until the tank is not empty.

Elijah’s isolation makes the danger worse. He leaves his servant behind and goes farther into the wilderness alone. Solitude seeks God on purpose, but isolation avoids people because of pain. The enemy loves that trap, because the lie that nobody could understand eventually becomes a life cut off from the people God may use to bring help.

God’s response to Elijah is stunningly kind. God does not begin with condemnation. An angel brings bread, water, sleep, and one simple instruction: “Get up and eat.” The next faithful action step is not always dramatic or super spiritual. Sometimes it is sleep, food, exercise, forgiveness, a text message, or simply doing the next right thing before the feelings catch up.

God’s power yesterday does not remove the need for God’s presence today. Elijah had seen fire fall, rain return, and ravens bring food, yet he still needed God to replenish him under the tree. God meets empty people there, reminding them that the journey is too much for them, but it is not too much for Him.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Capacity can shape every reaction Elijah’s fear of Jezebel was not just about Jezebel’s threat. His depleted capacity made normal pressure feel unbearable. A wise heart learns to ask whether the reaction is revealing an empty tank before assigning all the blame to the situation. [37:37]
• 2. Never make permanent conclusions depleted Elijah believed he was alone and finished, but God saw 7,000 faithful people Elijah could not see. Exhaustion can make a temporary low point look like the final word. Major decisions need clarity, and clarity often returns after rest and replenishment. [42:10]
• 3. Isolation turns pain into a trap Elijah left his servant behind before going under the broom bush. Solitude can draw a person toward God, but isolation pushes caring people away and makes pain louder. The belief that nobody will understand is often the doorway into deeper discouragement. [46:23]
• 4. Take the next faithful action God gave Elijah bread, water, sleep, and one manageable instruction. Feelings do not always lead a person out of despondency, but faithful actions can begin to reshape attitudes, emotions, and thoughts. The next step may be small, but obedience is still obedience when the soul is tired. [50:55]
• 5. God’s presence remains the source Elijah had experienced God’s power in huge ways, yet yesterday’s fire from heaven could not sustain today’s need for God. God sometimes allows emptiness to uncover where strength has been drawn from fleeting things. The journey is too much for human strength, but God meets His people with what they need.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [15:29] - Introducing Elijah’s Story
• [25:51] - Ravens, the Widow, and God’s Provision
• [27:53] - Elijah Challenges the Prophets of Baal
• [30:38] - Elijah Outruns Ahab’s Chariot
• [32:51] - Elijah Runs on Empty
• [34:05] - Capacity Shapes the Reaction
• [39:18] - Don’t Make Permanent Conclusions
• [45:06] - The Trap of Isolation
• [46:52] - Take the Next Faithful Step
• [54:01] - God’s Presence Is Still Needed

Bible Reading

1 Kings 19:1-18
“Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, "May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them." Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, 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." Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, "Get up and eat." He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. 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." 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. There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He replied, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." The Lord said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He replied, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." The Lord said to him, "Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.” [32:51]

1 Kings 18:45-46
“Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain started falling and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.” [31:38]

1 Kings 17:1-24
“Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to 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." Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: "Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there." So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. Then the word of the Lord came to him: "Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food." So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, "Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?" As she was going to get it, he called, "And bring me, please, a piece of bread." "As surely as the Lord your God lives," she replied, "I don't have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die." Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.'" She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah. Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. She said to Elijah, "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?" "Give me your son," Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. Then he cried out to the Lord, "Lord my God, have you brought tragedy even on this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?" Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried out to the Lord, "Lord my God, let this boy's life return to him!" The Lord heard Elijah's cry, and the boy's life returned to him, and he lived. Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, "Look, your son is alive!" Then the woman said to Elijah, "Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.” [25:51]

Observation questions

1. What major ways had God provided for and worked through Elijah in 1 Kings 17–18 before Elijah fled from Jezebel? [25:51]
2. After Jezebel threatened Elijah, what actions did Elijah take, and what did he ask God to do for him under the broom bush? [32:51]
3. What did Elijah say about himself and the people of Israel when God asked him why he was there, and how did God correct his view? [41:16]
4. What practical care and instructions did God provide for Elijah while he was exhausted in the wilderness? [47:29]

Interpretation questions

1. Why might Elijah have responded so differently to Jezebel’s threat than he did to the prophets of Baal, even after seeing God’s power so clearly? What does this reveal about the effect of depleted capacity on a person’s reactions? [37:29]
2. Elijah believed he was the only faithful person left, but God said there were 7,000 others. Why can exhaustion make a person’s view of God, themselves, and other people feel smaller than reality? [42:10]
3. Elijah left his servant behind before going farther into the wilderness. What is the difference between purposeful solitude with God and harmful isolation from people? [45:06]
4. God’s first response was not condemnation but sleep, food, water, and a manageable next step. What does this show about God’s care for people who are overwhelmed or worn down? [48:14]

Application questions

1. Think about a recent reaction that felt bigger than the situation—a sharp response, frustration over a text, discouragement at work, or impatience at home. Could depleted capacity have been part of what was happening? What might have been draining the tank? [39:18]
2. Is there a decision, conclusion, or statement you are tempted to make while exhausted—such as “I’m done,” “nothing will change,” or “I’m alone”? What could it look like to pause and seek rest, clarity, and wise counsel before treating that conclusion as permanent? [42:42]
3. What time of the week, season, or situation tends to leave you most depleted? How could recognizing that pattern help you avoid making important decisions or escalating conflict during that window? [43:41]
4. When you are hurting or overwhelmed, do you tend to seek healthy solitude with God or withdraw from people who care about you? Who is one safe person you could let in rather than carrying the weight alone? [46:18]
5. What might be the next faithful action step in front of you this week? Could it be sleep, a healthy meal, exercise, forgiveness, replying to a message, asking for help, or simply doing the next right thing? [51:46]
6. Where might you be relying on yesterday’s evidence of God’s power rather than drawing near to God for strength today? What simple practice could help you return to His presence this week? [54:21]