I can tell you of 3 specific times in my adult life that the Lord has told me to “hide in the Kerith Ravine.” The first time I was figuring out the whole fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. I needed time to adjust to the ups and downs I would experience physically; to learn the triggers and how to recover without taking a ton of Tylenol or Advil. The second time I was cleaning my parents’ house out and preparing to move into an apartment. The stress at that time was unreal. I wasn’t capable of doing much more than working. So I took a month off from any non-work related responsibilities. The third time was March 2014, which was the hardest one of all because there was no set time frame of return. The other two times lasted a month. I knew the first time was supposed to last longer but due to fear of being left out I jumped back in too soon. So when the Lord called me to a time of hiding in March 2014, I went without asking when I could return.
I have continued to wonder why I was in this “place.” A few weeks ago, I specifically started praying and asking the Lord to show me. He has been gracious to allow me to come out of the Ravine for the last few months to replenish my supplies, if you will, but I knew I hadn’t been released to full service yet. On Wednesday, September 16th I was giving an exam to a student and was reading from Streams in the Desert. The Lord spoke to my heart that I was in the “Kerith Ravine.”
September 16
"Hide in the Kerith Ravine." (1 Kings 17:3)
God’s servants must be taught the value of the hidden side of life. The person who is to serve in a lofty place before others must also assume a lowly place before his God. We should not be surprised if God occasionally says to us, “Dear child, you have had enough of this hurried pace, excitement, and publicity. Now I want you to go and hide yourself – ‘hide in the Kerith Ravine’ of sickness, the ‘Kerith Ravine’ of sorrow, or some place of total solitude, from which the crowds have turned away.” And happy is the person who can reply to the Lord, “Your will is also mine. Therefore I run to hide myself in You. ‘I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings’ [Ps. 61:4].”
Every saintly soul that desires to wield great influence over others must first win the power in some hidden “Kerith Ravine.” Acquiring spiritual power is impossible unless we hide from others and ourselves in some deep ravine where we may absorb the power of the eternal God. May our lives be like the vegetation centuries ago that absorbed the power of the sunshine and now gives the energy back after having become coal.
Lancelot Andrews, a bishop of the Church of England and one of the translators of the King James Bible of 1611, experienced his “Kerith Ravine,” in which he spent five hours of every day in prayer and devotion to God. John Welsh a contemporary of Andrews, and a Presbyterian who was imprisoned for his faith by James VI of Scotland, also had his “ravine.” He believed his day to be wasted if he did not spend eight to ten hours of isolated communion with God. David Brainerd’s “ravine” was the forests of North America while he served as pioneer missionary to the American Indians during the eighteenth century. And Christmas Evans, a preacher of the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries, had his long and lonely journeys through the hills of Wales.
Looking back to the blessed age from which we date the centuries, there are many notable “ravines.” The Isle of Patmos, the solitude of the Roman prisons, the Arabian Desert, and the hills and valleys of Palestine are all as enduringly memorable as those experienced by the people who have shaped our modern world.
Our Lord Himself lived through His “Kerith Ravine” in Nazareth, in the wilderness of Judea, amid the olive trees of Bethany, and in the solitude of the city of Gadara. So none of us is exempt from a “ravine” experience, where the sounds of human voices are exchanged for the waters of quietness that flow from the throne of God, and where we taste the sweetness and soak up the power of a life “hidden with Christ” (Col. 3:3). From Elijah, by F.B. Meyer
I wanted to shout and cry tears of joy at the same time but that would have totally disturbed my student!! I was so thankful that the Lord answered me. I could gladly remain here the rest of my life now that I know where I am. LOL. But that’s not really employing my faith and trust in the Lord now is it?
To know that He had not forgotten me, that He still had a purpose for my life and this ravine was part of it set my soul to soaring. And it became apparent last weekend that my time here is not complete. Because of my tonsils and my immune system, I am catching quite a bit of junk but as I shared in yesterday’s post, surgery is not an option until December. The Lord spoke to my heart that aside from my personal relationship with Him my priorities at this time are work and my grad school classes, at least for this semester. This completely broke my heart but the reality is singing is painful right now and it aggravates my tonsils horribly. So unless my cousin desires to have me sing in her wedding in November, I won’t be doing anymore singing until these pests are removed from my body. I will save my voice for her! I plan to be at church on Sunday mornings as much as I can but will also make use of the online media ministry. My typical Fall bucket list will have to wait. No Friday night football games for me. Instead, I’m looking at an early bedtime with lots of rest on the agenda for the entire weekend. It’s the only thing I know to do.
I am seeing it as a gift to truly be still and quiet before the Lord. If you don’t see me for a while then know that this is why. There is no big mystery surrounding my “disappearance”, I am not upset at anyone and no one has offended me. J I will use this time to pray for my pastor, my worship pastor, our leadership team, our choir and church like never before. I am simply trying to stay healthy until my tonsillectomy and then my prayer is that I will have energy like I have never known before!
“Guard me as you would guard your own eyes. Hide me in the shadow of your wings”. Psalm 17:8
“But the Lord is my fortress; my God is the mighty rock where I hide.” Psalm 94:22
What about you? Are you in a ravine?
I love you all!
Finding Joy while hiding on the Journey,
- Melody Faith
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