The Brook of Cherith.

To those who are facing tough times, isolated, feeling that your provision is being cut off and drying up — You are in the right place! God is teaching you to depend only on Him, He's cutting you off from this world, uprooting those ties. Why?

Because we're going home!

If you're currently going through a time of testing, take comfort in knowing that you're in good company!

Before Elijah could stand on Mount Carmel, confront and kill the 800 false prophets, raise a dead boy, and meet God at Mt.

Sinai, and eventually experiencing the rapture, he had to learn a few things first. This included understanding the significance of God's call to go and take refuge by the Brook of Cherith.

"Then the word of the Lord came to him (Elijah), saying, “Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” 1 Kings 17:2-4

"Cherith" means "cutting off", it represents a place where God intentionally separates us for a specific purpose — it's an experience meant to uproot us from the world and all its influences.

When you look through the Bible, most of God's people have gone through a 'Cherith':

Moses spent forty years in the backside of the desert, a time of isolation when he had no resources.

Joseph was in prison, falsely accused, and isolated. He went from prison to the right hand of the ruler of Egypt in one day.

David was in hiding during the time when he was being relentlessly pursued by King Saul before becoming a King.

Paul, after his conversion, spent nearly eleven years in relative obscurity in the desert.

Jesus always drew aside. He said: '"Come aside to a quiet place" — meaning: 'Let's get down to where things are a bit quieter and your dependence on God is more real. 'During this time Elijah spent in Cherith he learned three things:

OBEDIENCE: Before Elijah had his big moment on Mount Carmel, he had to learn something important while hanging out by the brook Cherith. When God told him to do something, Elijah didn't argue or hesitate. He just went ahead and did it. It was simple, it reminds us of what Jesus said in John 15:14, 'You're my friends if you do what I say.' Obedience is basically about listening to God and doing what He tells us.

DEPENDENCE: The second lesson Elijah had to learn here was about depending on God for his needs. God told him to hide by the brook Cherith, and He even commanded ravens to bring Elijah food. God's provision came to Elijah in two ways. He had a natural supply of water from the brook for drinking, and God also used ravens to bring him food.

This is truly a miracle because, typically, ravens eat meat – the very thing they brought to Elijah. Another interesting aspect is that ravens were considered unclean birds. It goes to show that God can bring blessings through unclean or unconventional vessels, as the entire world belongs to Him.

There may be times in our lives when God uses unclean or unconventional vessels to bless us, just as He did for Elijah.

PERSEVERANCE: God led him to a brook that was drying up.

He led him to a place of provision, but that provision wasn't going to last because of the drought in the land. What was once a flowing stream turned into a mere trickle, then into a puddle, followed by a mere handful of water, and eventually dwindled to just a small sip. So Elijah is at this place watching his provision dwindle.

You might wonder why God would have led him to a place where the water would dry up. Elijah could have thought that perhaps he should try to find a better place but this would have been a case of him trying to help God out in his own wisdom.

Elijah decided to stay right where he was. You know, in life, we often wish we had a clear roadmap, a GPS for every step of the way.

We like to have it all figured out – where we're heading, how long it'll take to get there. But God doesn't work that way. He guides us one step at a time, just like He did with Elijah.

He led Elijah to a place where the resources wouldn't last. Elijah had to rely completely on God to guide him. It was at the most challenging moment, when there seemed to be no way out, that the Word of the Lord came to him. God always speaks when it's needed, not way in advance.

So, sometimes, we just need to trust and take one step at a time. If you are in Cherith, you are in the right place! God is teaching you, and all of us, to depend only on Him. He's cutting those worldly roots off! Just stay there, embrace it, let God bless you, and work on you as He takes the world out of you because we know what's coming next! He's taking us out of this world - we're going HOME!!

Keep looking up!!