God intends for every believer to be in full control of his or her life through the – power and might of the Holy Ghost! The Bible makes it clear that our walk is to be ordered by the Lord; David testified, “Those who trust in the Lord will not be confounded” (see Psalm 22:5). Your life is not under control, if you are being victimised by a spirit of fear, lust, despondency or depression. If you are constantly bombarded with feelings of worthlessness or thoughts of giving up – your life is not under control! If any of this describes you, I pray that the Holy Ghost will use this message to grip your soul – and to put some fight back in you.

       God wants you to stand up against the devil – to reclaim all the territory you’ve given up to him!

       I want to show you how one of the most powerful, Godly men in all of the Bible lost control of his life for a season and how he got back in control. It is the story of Elijah! God told this mighty prophet to call together the 450 priests of Baal and Jezebel’s 400 prophets of Asherah at the top of Mount Carmel, God was going to have a contest – a showdown with the devil! It was all about who would be worthy of worship – the pagan gods, or Jehovah God. You remember that Holy Ghost fire came down from heaven, consuming the sacrifice on Elijah’s altar and licking up the twelve barrels of water. When the middle-of-the-road believers saw this, they all fell on their faces and worshiped the Lord! Then these people fell into a holy rage because they had been fooled! Their exposure to the worthless idolatry had kept them under bondage in captivity. So they took those 850 heathen priests and slew them all!

       Meanwhile, Elijah told King Ahab, “Get ready for rain!” And the prophet went up on the mountain and prayed down a mighty thunderstorm, ending the drought. Then the Spirit of God fell upon him – and Elijah outran Ahab’s chariot for sixteen miles, back to the palace in Jezreel! Scripture says, “And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah” (1 Kings 18:46). Indeed, no man could do any of this without the Spirit of God resting upon him mightily.

       When Elijah came to Jezreel, he stopped outside the city gate and wouldn’t go in. He represents where many of us are right now outside the gate of evil, separated from sin, – beyond the reach of all enemies. Up to this point, Elijah was very much in control of his life. He was uplifted, fearless, and zealous for God and hating idolatry. His prayers prevailed- none of his words fell to the ground. And God had just used him in the greatest manner of his entire ministry. Elijah single-handedly had shaken the very powers of hell! We don’t know what Elijah was thinking as he sat outside the city gate. But we do know he “…was a man subject to like passions as we are” (James 5:17). He was fully human, in spite of all he had just accomplished. I believe Elijah greatly expected God to finish the work He had begun – to bring down all idolatry in the land! He probably thought, “Perhaps those righteous ones who saw the fire fall will raise up and cast Jezebel out of her palace. Surely she’s fearful. She’s probably packing her bags and ordering a chariot right now. “There could be riots in the streets. And the people are going to need a prophetic voice when everything erupts I’ve got to be there!” As he waited outside the city in anticipation of God’s move, Elijah felt very important, very needed – and mighty in God.

       Beloved, you can experience something like Elijah did on Mount Carmel – pulling down strongholds prevailing in prayer, rescuing souls from Satan’s clutches and yet immediately experience a great fall! The most vulnerable point in your life as a Christian is right after you’ve experienced a mighty victory. Many pastors, evangelists and lay-people who have been greatly led of God have fallen because they became careless and smug in their hour of power. They thought they’d come to a place in God where they were above being attacked – that they could handle anything without any trouble. But an angry devil moved in at the first sign of their smugness. He injected into their minds a spiritual pride and they fell because they were not prepared! That same pride was in Elijah! The true contents of his heart came out later as he hid in a cave on Mount Horeb: “And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” (1 Kings 19:10). Elijah was saying, “I’m one of a kind, Lord. I’m the only one left In Israel who is fighting for You!”

       Here is what we’re got to learn.

1. You Must Keep in Mind That God Is With You – Even in Your Running! God is with you during every attack of the enemy. He never leaves you nor forsakes you! Elijah was in utter despair – totally confused, fearful, wanting to give up. But God looked upon him in his despondency and sent him a private angel- to be a butler and a cook for him! Bible says in 1 Kings 19:5, 6: “As he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat, And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baked on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again”. Here is what I believe the Lord said to the angel before sending him to Elijah: “Be patient with him! He’s hurting, confused, full of questions; He thinks he wants to die, but he really wants to live. He feels useless, at the end of his rope. But I still love him! I’ve got much more work for him to do in My kingdom. “Soon I’m going to awaken his spirit. But, meanwhile, feed him well – refresh him! And tell him the journey is too great for him. He can’t make it without eating the food I supply!” Always remember God knows our heart even in our hopeless situation.

2. Taking Back Control Requires Dealing With The Lord’s Still, Small Voice!

       The voice of the Holy Spirit will ask you the same thing He asked Elijah: “What doest thou here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:9). God was saying to his servant, “How long will you allow the devil to lie to you? When will you wake up and say, ‘Enough of this foolishness!’ It’s time to take a stand, to fight back to take control!” Perhaps the Lord is saying the same thing to you – right now: “Why are you hiding here, living in this fear and depression? How long will you let this go on? You don’t need to fear – I have never left you. Get up! Your work for Me is not done. Get out of this cave of sadness and guilt!”

       God had to put this question to Elijah twice. At first, Elijah answered that his holiness and zeal had gotten him in trouble: “Lord, they’ve slain all Your prophets. I’m the only one left and they’re trying to kill me!” But God asked the question again because Elijah hadn’t told the whole truth!

       You see, God was after what was deep in Elijah’s heart – the real reason his spirit and soul were down and out. It was this: “God, you let the devil get to me! You let him harass me, take away my joy, put fear in me. And I did not deserve such treatment! I have been holy, obedient, doing all You told me to do, Yet after all my praying, preaching and obedience; I ended up with the biggest battle of my life!”

       Does this describe your spirit as well? You’ve tried your best to do God’s will and work, giving Jesus your whole heart and energy – and yet you’ve fallen under attack from the devil! It’s time to hear the gentle whisper of God which comes out with deep love towards us, just bounce back to the one who knows your heart. God wants us to be in His plan always. Never give in to the plans of the devil and lean on to the one who gives Eternal Life. Be a warrior for the Kingdom of Heaven against the wicked powers of the satan and his plans.

Amen!