BCF Philly | Pastor Kenneth Sheppard | The importance of being in the right place at the right time

Jul 12, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Ravens at the Brook, Bread at Dawn

When God calls you to an unfamiliar place, provision hides in plain sight. Elijah obeyed without knowing how scavenger birds would sustain him. The brook seemed isolated, but it became a table set by divine hands. Trust grows when we move before seeing the full picture. God’s “there” always holds what “here” cannot offer. Your brook may look barren, but faithfulness unlocks hidden manna. [52:36]

“And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.”
(1 Kings 17:6, ESV)

Reflection: Where is God asking you to trust His provision without visible evidence? What “ravens” might He already be preparing in your obedience?

Day 2: Glorified Confidence in Unlikely Assignments

Elijah faced a tyrant king with no backup plan—only raw faith in God’s character. True confidence isn’t self-assurance but rooted in who God declares Himself to be. Like Moses at the burning bush, our inadequacies spotlight God’s sufficiency. Divine assignments stretch us to depend wholly on the One who ordains them. Your trembling “yes” becomes a megaphone for His power. [59:05]

“But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?’ He said, ‘But I will be with you.’”
(Exodus 3:11–12, ESV)

Reflection: What God-sized task makes you feel unqualified? How might embracing your weakness amplify His strength in this season?

Day 3: When the Brook Dries, Listen for “Arise”

A dried brook isn’t abandonment—it’s an invitation. Elijah’s sustenance vanished to propel him toward greater purpose. Divine disruptions shake complacency, urging movement to new assignments. What once nourished you may now limit your growth. God often stirs stagnation to steer you toward deeper dependence. Don’t mourn the drought; follow the voice saying, “Go further.” [28:46]

“And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land. Then the word of the Lord came to him, ‘Arise, go to Zarephath.’”
(1 Kings 17:7–9, ESV)

Reflection: What “brook” in your life is drying up? How might this loss be redirecting you to a new kingdom assignment?

Day 4: Divine Disruptions as Stepping Stones

God reroutes our plans to align with His eternal script. Elijah’s detour to Cherith prepared him for Zarephath’s widow. What feels like interruption is often incubation. Every obedience trains us for the next mission. Even scavenger birds and foreign widows become tools in God’s hands. Your disrupted agenda may be the runway for miracles. [30:10]

“And the angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ So he rose and went.”
(Acts 8:26–27, ESV)

Reflection: Where has God rerouted your plans recently? How might this detour be positioning you for unexpected kingdom impact?

Day 5: There Is Where Your “After” Begins

Elijah’s story didn’t end at the brook or the widow’s house—each “there” was a bridge. God’s assignments chain together like stepping stones across a river. What feels final is merely a checkpoint. Keep moving, even when the path feels fragmented. Your ultimate provision lives in perpetual obedience, not any single location. [40:30]

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
(Philippians 1:6, ESV)

Reflection: What “completed work” do you struggle to trust God with? How might today’s obedience be a stitch in His greater tapestry?

Sermon Summary

First Kings 17 brings Elijah on the scene almost out of nowhere, but God has clearly been preparing him for a set time and a set place. Elijah stands before Ahab, an evil king married to Jezebel, and declares that Yahweh, not Baal, controls the rain, the dew, and the heavens. God sends Elijah into a dangerous place with a hard word, and Elijah steps into it with “glorified confidence,” not confidence rooted in education, experience, or self, but confidence rooted in the living God.

God’s assignment exposes human inadequacy on purpose. Moses felt that when God sent him to Pharaoh, and Elijah faced it when God sent him to Ahab. The point is not that the servant is enough. The point is that God says, “I will be with you,” and what God commands is already finished in his sight, even though the servant still has to walk it out by faith.

The right place at the right time is not what a person chooses. The right place is where God says to go, when God says to go. After Elijah speaks to Ahab, God sends him to the brook Cherith. That place looks isolated and strange, but the brook is where the provision is. God says the ravens will feed him “there.” Provision is not just any place. Provision is the appointed place God has already prepared.

The word “there” becomes the heart of the call. Many Christians stay “here” too long because “here” feels familiar, comfortable, and safe. “There” may be scary because it is new, but if God has spoken, then “there” holds provision, protection, and purpose. Still, God also warns against running ahead. If God has not revealed “there” yet, faithfulness means waiting well and staying obedient right where God has placed the person.

The brook eventually dries up, and that drying is not proof that God has left. The dried brook may be a divine disruption. God often dries up what once sustained a person because that resource was never the source. God is the source, and the brook was only a resource. When God tells Elijah to go from Cherith to Zarephath, the call is not backward but further. Growth, favor, purpose, and deeper obedience all require trust and movement. God keeps moving his people because there is still kingdom work to do, still people to reach, and still more of Christ to be formed in them.

Key Takeaways

1. Glorified confidence rests in God God’s assignments are not carried by natural ability, personality, or nerve. Elijah could stand before Ahab because the living God sent him, not because Elijah was impressive in himself. True confidence is not arrogance, it is belonging to God and being aligned with what God has actually commanded. [59:05]
2. Provision waits in the appointed there The ravens were not sent everywhere, they were commanded to feed Elijah “there.” God’s care was tied to God’s instruction, and Elijah’s obedience brought him into what had already been prepared. A person can pray hard and still miss provision by refusing the place God named. [75:54]
3. Do not confuse here with safety “Here” can feel stable because it is known, but comfort can become disobedience when God has already said move. “There” may feel scary because it is new, but God’s presence changes the meaning of new. The issue is not whether the next place feels easy, but whether God has spoken. [79:37]
4. Wait well until God speaks Restlessness can dress itself up as faith, but movement without instruction can leave a person outside the provision of God. If God has not revealed the next “there,” obedience means staying faithful in the current place without making plans God never gave. Waiting well is not passivity, it is disciplined trust under the Master’s timing. [84:48]
5. Dried brooks can be mercy A dried brook can feel like loss, but God may be disrupting dependence on the resource in order to lead the person back to the Source. The thing that once sustained was never meant to become the final destination. When God dries it up, the next command may be the doorway to deeper purpose.

## [88:24]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[51:41] - Elijah Before Ahab
[54:03] - Wrong Place, Right Time
[56:31] - Appointed Places In Scripture
[58:43] - Three Truths From Elijah
[59:05] - Glorified Confidence Defined
[60:05] - Facing Evil King Ahab
[65:05] - Moses And God’s Presence
[71:17] - Provision Waiting There
[77:19] - Are You At Your Brook?
[84:48] - Waiting For Clear Instructions
[88:24] - When The Brook Dries Up
[96:36] - Moving Further To Zarephath
[101:13] - Prayer For Obedience

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
1 Kings 17:1-9 (ESV)
Exodus 3:12 (ESV) – “He said, ‘But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.’”
Philippians 1:6 (ESV) – “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

Observation Questions

What specific instructions did God give Elijah after he confronted King Ahab, and how did Elijah respond? (1 Kings 17:2-5)
In the sermon, what examples were given of God using people at the “right place and right time” (e.g., Philip, David)? [56:55]
Why did the brook Cherith eventually dry up, and what did this signify about God’s plan for Elijah? (1 Kings 17:7)

Interpretation Questions

Why might God intentionally send people to places that expose their inadequacy (like Moses facing Pharaoh or Elijah confronting Ahab)? How does this relate to His promise, “I will be with you”?
The sermon says, “Provision is the appointed place God has already prepared.” How does this idea challenge common assumptions about where and how God provides?
What does the drying brook teach us about the difference between God as the source of provision versus temporary resources (like the brook itself)?

Application Questions

Where is your current “there” – the place or assignment God has clearly called you to? If you’re unsure, what steps could you take to discern His direction? [17:37]
When have you stayed in a comfortable “here” (a relationship, job, or habit) out of fear, even when God prompted you to move? What would obedience look like now? [19:37]
Describe a “dried brook” in your life (something that once sustained you but no longer does). How might God be using this disruption to redirect you toward deeper dependence on Him? [28:24]
The sermon warns against “running ahead of God” when He hasn’t revealed the next step. How can you practice “waiting well” in your current season? What does disciplined trust look like daily? [25:09]
Reflect on a time God stretched you beyond your natural abilities. How did that experience shape your understanding of “glorified confidence” versus self-reliance?
What practical adjustments could help you prioritize obedience to God’s specific instructions over personal plans or preferences? [23:23]

Sermon Clips

68s

#WhenYourBrookDries

“``What do you do when your brook dries up? What do you do? Moments in your life that once sustained you, they dry up. What do you do? What do you do when your brook dries up the life you were living that you thought was the best ever begins to feel empty and pointless? What do you do? Most of us in those moments, we turn and ask God, why God? Why are you letting this happen? Why are you giving me this just to take it away? Many times in our lives, the drying up of things, the drying up of people, circumstances is not a sign of God's absence, it's a sign of his presence because he is divinely disrupting your life for a specific reason.”

86s

#WaitForHisInstructions

“For others of you, God hasn't told you where there is yet, but the instructions are coming regarding where your there For those that haven't received their instructions, I got to say this, stop trying to run ahead of God. You're tired of here, but he ain't tell you where to go yet. So what you do with your smart self, you make you making up all these plans on your own, I'm going to go there, I'm going to go here, and God said, no no no no no no no. Stay there until I tell you where there is Because anywhere else you go, you're not going to have provision there. Why? Because provision is there. Stay here until he tells you where there is. Learn to wait well until he gives you those instructions. And then when God finally releases you and said, okay, I need you to go there, that's when you go. Don't hesitate.”

78s

#TimeToGoThere

“It's a word for somebody today. I don't know who. God told me to tell you, you've been here too long. You've been here too long. You should have been over there. That's where your provision is. That's where God has set up for you. And you don't want to go. You don't want to go. It's time to start heading there. And I know here is comfortable. I get that. And I know there is scary. Why? Because it's new. Shout out to Pastor Art, it's new. It's new. But is not scary when you know new is there, and there is where God told you to go. Everything you need is there, provision, protection, purpose. They're all there.”

73s

#ProvisionIsAPlace

“Why did he send him there? Protection? Yes. But also something I think even more important because the brook is where his provision was. You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you, here it is, there. I have commanded the ravens to feed you there. Elijah's provision was in the exact place at the exact time where God was sending him. I heard pastors preach this text and they always talk about provision is a place, and that's partly true. Provision is the place that God says for you to go. That is provision, supernatural provision, where God says go when he says It's a specific place God appoints at a specific time. And Elijah moved in obedience.”

63s

#ServeWithGlorifiedConfidence

“We got to do our job. His job's already done. We got to get on board. When God assigns he will sustain you through it. We don't have to try to manufacture results, we don't have to try to prove anything on our own, we can do it by ourselves. Our job is to remain faithful and obedient. Glorified confidence allows you to serve without being stressed, to lead without being insecure and to speak without the fear of being rejected. Because what you'll find out is that the work is really not yours, it's his. He's just using you as a tool to get it done. Second thing God gave me to share. As crazy as the right place and right time may seem, provision is already there waiting for you.”

82s

#BeInTheRightPlaceRightTime

“God's divine provision was there. Question is then for you all and for myself: Are you there today? Are you there? Are you in the place at the time where God told you to go? Are you there? Because that is where all of your provision is. Are you at your brook? Are you where God told you to be? Because you can't be at the place at the wrong time, you'll miss it. You can't be at the right time at the wrong place, you'll also miss everything that God has for you. And a lot of people are not there today. A lot of Christians are not there, meaning where God wants them to be. Christians are missing out on their provision because they aren't in the right place at the right time.”

73s

#GoWhereGodSends

“As crazy as the right place and right time may seem, provision is already there waiting for you. It's right here in the story. Great news for all of us because God's going to send us places we don't want to go. God's going to send us at times we're to tell him are inconvenient for us because we had we made other plans. But the truth is, the only thing worth wild, the only thing with any kind of meaning to it are the things that God has created for us to do. And a lot of people aren't there. I praise God that I'm finally there. It took me a long time to get there because I was the plan maker. I had all kind of plans. And, thankfully, my wife just just shook her head, Alright baby, that's what you want to do. Had all kind of plans, businesses, they all failed. Because God said, I didn't tell you to do any of that.”

91s

#ConfidenceInGodOnly

“Three things God gave me to share, three spiritual truths that we see right in the life of Elijah, right in this first chapter we just read. First one is, glorified confidence is critical whenever and wherever God assigned you. Glorified confidence. Pastor, what's glorified confidence? It's confidence that is rooted in God and not in you. A lot of people got a lot of confidence, but a lot of times it's in them. It's in your experience, it's in your education, in your pedigree. Human confidence isn't worth anything. Only confidence in God will allow you and I to do whatever God has created us to do. And we see it here in Elijah, it's blessed assurance in the fact that God is who he says he is, and that he will do everything he says he will do. So, our job is to simply place our faith in him and go about doing what God told us to do. Sounds easy, but it's challenging to do. But it's right.”

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BCF Philly | Pastor Kenneth Sheppard | The importance of being in the right place at the right time

Devotional

Day 1: Ravens at the Brook, Bread at Dawn

Day 2: Glorified Confidence in Unlikely Assignments

Day 3: When the Brook Dries, Listen for “Arise”

Day 4: Divine Disruptions as Stepping Stones

Day 5: There Is Where Your “After” Begins

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

BCF Philly | Pastor Kenneth Sheppard | The importance of being in the right place at the right time

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