Dock Resource Kit

Sunday sermon, 19 October 2025

Summary

This week Abie spoke to us about Elijah’s moment of burnout in 1 Kings 19, showing how even God’s most faithful servants can reach breaking point. After the dramatic victory on Mount Carmel, Elijah fled in fear and despair, but God met him tenderly in the wilderness — not with rebuke or spectacle, but through provision, presence, and people. In the bread and water, the gentle whisper, and the promise of community, we’re reminded that God forms us not only in moments of triumph but also in seasons of exhaustion, and that the dips in our discipleship journeys can be as formational as the highs.

Key Points & Takeways

Elijah’s Burnout After Victory - After a huge spiritual triumph on Mount Carmel, Elijah is immediately plunged into fear and despair. His story reminds us that even the strongest believers can experience exhaustion and discouragement right after great victories.

Formation Isn’t Linear - Our discipleship journeys aren’t neat, ever-upward graphs. Like Elijah’s, they include highs and lows — seasons of strength and seasons of struggle — all of which God uses to shape us.

God Meets Elijah in Three Ways:

Provision: God first meets Elijah’s physical needs with food, water, and rest, showing that He cares for both body and soul.
Presence: God reveals Himself not through wind, earthquake, or fire, but in a gentle whisper — an intimate, personal encounter for a weary heart.
People: God reminds Elijah he’s not alone, giving him new relationships and purpose — kings to anoint, a successor in Elisha, and 7,000 others who remain faithful.

Formation Through the Wilderness - Elijah’s forty days in the desert symbolize seasons of hardship, preparation, and waiting. God often forms us most deeply in these wilderness times, when He restores perspective and renews calling.

Our Response - Like Elijah, we are invited to retreat rather than run — to let God provide what we need, reveal His presence afresh, and surround us with people who help us persevere in faith.

Dock Discussion Questions

Elijah had just seen God’s power in a mighty way, yet still found himself afraid and burnt out. Why do you think spiritual highs are often followed by deep lows in our faith journeys?
God provided Elijah with simple, practical care — food, water, and rest — before addressing his deeper spiritual needs. What might that tell us about how God cares for the whole person?
Elijah expected to meet God in dramatic displays of power, but found Him instead in a gentle whisper. When have you experienced God’s presence in unexpected or quiet ways?
God reminded Elijah that he was not alone — there were others standing firm in faith. Who are the people God has placed around you for support, and how can you intentionally nurture those relationships?

Long-form, edited transcript

Formation
What Are You Doing Here?

1 Kings 19:1-18
Romans 3:23-24

Scripture Reading

19 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.2 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.”
3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 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.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.
All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 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.
7 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.” 8 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. 9 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?”
10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LordGod 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.”
11 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.12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his faceand went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LordGod 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.”
15 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. 16 Also, anointJehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elishason of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 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. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

This is the 4th in our series on Elijah and what a handbrake turn it is!
For those of you who were here last week, or who know the passage that comes before this, Elijah has just performed probably one of the most iconic miracles in the Old Testament. King Ahab and his wife Jezabel are fierce opponents of the Lord, killing and persecuting his people. Leading others to worship false gods. As instructed by God, Elijah presents them a challenge. Bring forth your false prophets, prepare an altar, and let's see who’s god moves first.

There’s a dramatic showdown in which 450 prophets of Baal shout, dance, slash themselves and frantically prophesy for hours and hours, and nothing happens. Then Elijah - one prophet vs Baal’s 450 - steps up, douses his altar in water, and then calls upon the Lord. He says “Let it be known today that you are God. Answer me, Lord, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”

Without hesitation, the Lord sent his fire, and the altar, the sacrifice and even the water was destroyed. The prophets were seized and killed and the people turned to the Lord. It was a huge display of power, a victorious showdown for the Lord and - in turn - his prophet Elijah.

And so, following this, today’s passage seems so out of place. At what should be a moment of intense spiritual high, how is he saying “I’ve had enough, let me die.” Why, after such an incredible victory is Elijah still scared?

Well as we track through these stories of Elijah and next week Elisha, we are seeing the highs and the lows of their discipleship journeys, of their formation and how we might also be able to relate to them. Because ultimately that’s why we’re still studying these scriptures thousands of years after they happened. Not just because it’s a cool story, but because in some ways, for each of us here today, it’s our story as well.

Maybe you can’t relate to last week's epic, victorious showdown, but you can relate to today's defeated and desperate escape. A few weeks ago when introducing this series, Brigid said “Elijah was formed by encounters with God, and Elisha was formed by the discipleship and following of Elijah.”

Today, as we head towards Elisha’s introduction next week, I want to talk about the importance of both of those things. The encounters with God as well as the discipleship of others.

Discipleship Journey

We are all at different places on our formational journeys. Whether you’ve been a Christian your whole lives, today is your first day in church, or you are somewhere in between.

If we were to draw a graph of our spiritual formation, we’d hope it looked like this:

A positive correlation showing the point where we meet Jesus and then a steady increase from there with every positive discipleship experience we have.

Our perhaps we want it to look like this:

A leap from 0-100 when we meet Jesus, and then just staying at 100 for the rest of our lives.

In fact, mine looks more like this:

There are highs and lows. Points where it’s really positive followed - often unexpectedly - by some really significant dips.

Unfortunately for us, formation is not linear. Discipleship journeys rarely look like these nice, neat graphs showing straight lines and positive correlations. They’re often a bit more like mine.

So much as today’s story seems out of place, reality teaches us that it’s not out of the ordinary. Spiritual burnout, or these unexpected dips in our faith can come for us all. Even when on the outside it looks like everything is going incredibly well. Even when to others it looks like we’re smashing it. What we learn from today’s story is that God will meet us in these burnt out moments, and - though it's hard to see in the moment - even the lowest times can ultimately be times of huge formational growth.

Spiritual Burnout

We meet Elijah today at probably his lowest point. He has been a faithful prophet for some time. He’s seen amazing miracles and people turning to the Lord, he has experienced incredible spiritual encounters, but today he is burnt out. I’m willing to bet that being a prophet in those days was pretty tough and pretty lonely. More often than not the job of the prophet was to go to the most powerful people and warn them that they were doing wrong. Rarely - if at all - did God send a prophet to a king to tell them what a good job they were doing.

Following last week’s incredible display of power he must have thought “Surely now Lord, it’s over.”, “Surely now Lord, they will turn to you and my work here is done.” Yes, the Lord moved in a powerful and dramatic way. Yes, the people are converted and they turn to the Lord. Yes, Baal’s prophets are killed. But Ahab is still king, and Jezabel his wife, is furious at this defeat. Jezebel sends word to Elijah that she wants him dead. Even after this mighty victory, it’s still not over. His work here is not done.

For Elijah, this does not feel victorious, it’s just another battle in a war that feels like it might never end. He fears for his life, so he literally runs away. Leaving his servant behind, he runs alone into the wilderness, lays down under a tree and says he’s had enough. He wishes to die.

40 days & 40 nights.

The bible tells us that Elijah spends 40 days and 40 nights in this wilderness. ‘40 days’ is a motif which comes up a lot in the bible:

How long the rain fell in The Great Flood from Genesis. (Gen 7:12)
How long Moses fasted for whilst up Mount Sinai, twice. (Ex 24:18; 34:28)
Jonah “Ninevah will be over thrown in 40 days.” (Jon 3:4)
Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days. (1 Sam 17:16)
How long Jesus spent in the desert. (Matt 4:1-2, Luke 4:1-2)
Jesus post resurrection is said to have appeared to the disciples “over a period of 40 days.” (Acts 1:3)

In a biblical sense, 40 days and 40 nights might not literally mean that amount of time, but rather it might be a literary device, or a phrase denoting a deeper meaning. In the same way long lost friends might say it's been a million years since they’ve caught up, or a hungry diner might say they’ve waited hours for their food. St Augustine noted that as a time marker, the number forty in the Bible is often associated with hardship, affliction and punishment. Others have said it’s a number associated with waiting, preparation.

Remembering this is our story, not just his, what this means is for us that periods of formation often feel long. Sometimes they’re hard, sometimes it feels like we’re under spiritual attack, sometimes we are unexpectedly burnt out. But today we’re going to hear three ways God showed up for Elijah in this time, and - remembering this is our story, not just his - we’re going to believe that he’ll do the same for us.

Provisions

The first thing the Lord gave Elijah in the wilderness was practical provisions:

“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” 1 Kings 19:5-8

Seeing his suffering, the Lord said ‘the journey is too much for you’ other translations say ‘you do not have the strength’. In the wake of last week’s story, some may view this behaviour from Elijah as ungrateful, but rather than rebuking him for running away, or chastising him for giving up, he sends angels to care for him. Giving him bread and water and time to rest. He gave him what he needed to strengthen him. God recognises his practical, human needs and in this really simple way, he meets them. Sometimes when we are burnt out, there are simple, practical things that we need to sustain us.

It’s important to remember that food alone wasn’t the answer to Elijah’s troubles, neither was water, neither was rest. I don’t know if he went into the wilderness because he was hungry, thirsty and tired. These provisions were important, but being hungry was not the root of Elijah’s troubles.

Sometimes we can get caught up thinking that these material things are the answer.
‘If I had a better phone’, ‘If I had a car’, ‘If I just had more money’, then all my problems would be solved. Sometimes there are real, physical barriers to our faith. We simply don’t have the strength. But more often it is our hearts which are in need of healing.

In Luke 5:17–26, when Jesus heals a paralysed man, he first forgives him his sins. Recognising that it was not just a physical healing this man needed, but a spiritual one. We all have our own unique needs, wants, desires and worries. But what unites us is that we are all sinners.

Our physical, material needs may vary, but spiritually we all need the same thing as Romans 3:23-24 says:

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

God knows what we need, and he can and will provide for us in many ways, but it’s not just our physical needs which he can meet.

Presence

Which leads us onto our second point. Once Elijah is strengthened, he gives him his presence.

“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?”” 1 Kimgs 19:11-13

Elijah was hiding in a cave and the Lord called to him ‘What are you doing here?’ From within the cave, Elijah calls back that he tried. He’s tired, alone and scared. The Lord replies “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” There is a huge wind, an earthquake and a fire, all things we see in other stories in the bible as being ways in which God displayed his power. But it was the whisper which he used to draw Elijah out of the cave. Recognising that he did not need a grand display, but an intimate meeting.

Elijah was no stranger to the presence of the Lord, but here he appears to him in a new way. A gentle, personal way. God recognises where he’s at and what he needs from him, and he presents himself to him afresh. Sometimes when we are burnt out we need God to reach out to us in new ways. But it's important to remember that this is not someone who lacked faith, or was unsure of the Lord’s power. This story happens immediately after an incredible display of God’s power. And even before that we read of Elijah raising a boy from the dead.

I don’t know if he went into the wilderness because he lacked faith in God. He intimately knew the power and presence of the Lord and had journeyed with him for years. Many of us here today are the same. But just like Elijah, that doesn’t make us immune to this burn out. It doesn’t make us immune to these times of saying ‘Lord, I have had enough’.

What we need in those times, are the third thing that the Lord provided him with…

People

Lastly the Lord gave him people.

”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.” 1 Kings 19:15-18

The life of a prophet would have been a lonely one. The last thing God gave him on the mountain was a support network. He gives him the names of kings to anoint, the name of his successor, and the report of 7,000 Israelites who did not fall away. Last week we heard of a hundred of the Lord’s prophets hidden in caves, and following the fiery showdown the people all turn back to the Lord. Twice in today's passage Elijah said “I am the only one left.” I don’t think this is true, but I believe that it felt true to Elijah.

That sentiment might ring true for some of you here today. You might be sitting here, surrounded by others who love God, and yet you feel lonely. You might think the battles you’re facing are yours alone to fight. That maybe you had others who supported you in the past, but now you are the only one left.

Earlier I showed you a graph of my discipleship journey. Every high was a point in which I had people around me to love, support and cheer me on in my discipleship. Every low was when I lost that. Coming home from Bible camp back to my non christian household. Moving to London - to work for a church - but losing the community I’d built at uni. Starting an amazing Bible study group and then COVID shutting us all inside.

Elijah was a prophet, this lonely lifestyle wouldn’t have necessarily been new to him. I don’t know if he went into the wilderness because he was lonely. I don’t know if he went into the wilderness because he was hungry. I don’t know if he went into the wilderness because he lacked faith. Maybe it was a combination of all 3 things, but honestly, sometimes spiritual burn out hits us when we least expect it and we can’t always pinpoint the reason why.

What we can do is follow the example of Elijah, not running but retreating into a time where we allow ourselves to be formed. Asking the Lord for the provisions, the presence and the people we need to come out stronger. Earlier I said that these periods of formation can feel long, hard and like a spiritual attack. But they are also times of preparation and - if we are able to recognise it - they are times in which the Lord will give us perspective. Another important word beginning with ‘P’.

Time to evaluate what our needs really are. To seek the presence of the Lord - maybe in new ways than we are used to. And to ask God to raise up that support network we need.

Closing Prayer

Lord, give us today the provisions we need to strengthen us. Give us today your presence that we may draw nearer. Give us today the people to support us when we cannot support ourselves. And in all things, give us the perspective to see things as you do, to understand your greater plans, and to trust in you, that you will give us all we need.

Amen