{"id":62762,"date":"2019-09-11T17:29:58","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T14:29:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=62762"},"modified":"2023-04-05T17:22:35","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T14:22:35","slug":"the-suffering-of-a-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/the-suffering-of-a-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"The Suffering Of A Leader"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[858,402],"acf":{"old_id":"62762","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":34250,"related_cahpter":"305","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Do we see the real Elijah when he stands strong at Mount Carmel, or when he is alone, with his head between his knees?","content":"

Elijah is known for powerful public stances. He appears on the scene out of nowhere in 17:1 and declares a drought, \u201cuntil I say so.\u201d Three years later, he meets Ahab and blames him for the drought, then sets up a massive showdown to prove to the people once and for all that \u201cThe Lord alone is God! (18:39). He is apparently in his element at that showdown, mocking the prophets of Baal and expressing unwavering confidence that God is with him and will send fire as He has withheld rain, at Elijah\u2019s call. Elijah then kills 400 idolatrous prophets \u2013 not a task we like to think about, but one which certainly displays Elijah\u2019s capabilities for decisive public action.<\/span><\/p>\n

And yet.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes, the biggest, boldest actions of the most decisive leaders mask a more complex internal life.<\/span><\/p>\n

Elijah is devoted to God, but like anyone, he has his moments.<\/span><\/p>\n

The most obvious is when, hungry and tired, in danger, and \u201cno better than my fathers,\u201d Elijah asks God to take his life (19:4). This is Elijah\u2019s low point, from which he can\u2019t seem to recover; God tries to work with him, but Elijah simply repeats in despair, \u201cI am moved by zeal for the LORD\u2026 the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant… I alone am left, and they are out to take my life\u201d (19:10, 14). Elijah is burnt out and unable to connect with his people, and God finally instructs him to hand the mantle over to a successor.<\/span><\/p>\n

But even before that personal showdown, easy to miss between his monumental exclamations at Mount Carmel and his later heartbreaking expressions of frustration with his lot and life, Elijah takes one poignant moment alone and puts his head between his knees (18:42). After his powerful demonstration, and despite his assurance to Ahab that rain is coming, Elijah suddenly doesn\u2019t seem so sure. Perhaps he is actually worried that the rain might not come as called \u2013 and so he repeatedly sends his servant to check, until a cloud appears and he can relax.<\/span><\/p>\n

And perhaps Elijah is simply drained. It\u2019s hard work to make a public spectacle; religious zeal takes a good bit of energy. Did it come naturally to Elijah, as we tend to think? Do we see the real Elijah when he stands strong at Mount Carmel, or when he grabs a moment alone to put his head between his knees and recover?<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe the essence of Elijah\u2019s character \u2013 like God Himself \u2013 is not to be found in the fire and brimstone and crushing noise, but in the small quiet voice. In his private prayers to save the son of a woman who helped him. In his solitary mountaintop angst. In the internal devotion that drives him to zealous demonstrations he might rather have avoided, and in the desperation that comes when he realizes the effects of his efforts will be fleeting at best.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is what a leader does, and this is how a leader sometimes suffers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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