In my devotion time this morning I finished the book of I Kings and got into the next book, II Kings. I read the answer to the question first, and then I got to the question. In II Kings 2:14, Elisha asks the question, "Where is the Lord God of Elijah?" Now you may have referenced that to another person, but the spirit of the question remains the same, "Where is God?" I will answer that shortly, but first I need to identify with Elisha. Maybe you can too. Elisha asks this question upon standing at the brink of the Jordan River, a river he just crossed with his mentor, Elijah, a man of God that Elisha had seen used of God to perform several incredible miracles. Elisha heard Elijah speak words of prophecy that came to pass as accurately as they were spoken. Elisha saw Elijah call fire from heaven to destroy a couple captains and their troops, from King Ahaziah. And at the last, Elisha watched as Elijah made the grandest of exits from this world as a chariot of fire with horses of fire took Elijah up in a whirlwind. Elisha had truly seen the power and ability of God...in someone else's life. Now his mentor is gone. Now he stands on the edge of the Jordan River, no small meandering creek, and has a decision to make. We have all stood in this place with this same decision to make. It comes during times of great loss or loneliness, Elijah was gone, or it comes in the face of an insurmountable circumstance, the Jordan River. We have all asked this question, "Where is God!? I have seen Him work in the life of others. Where is He in my life?" I do not know that the question in and of itself is a bad thing. In another portion of scripture, God invited us to prove Him. Ask your questions, but don't stop there. Elisha didn't ask the question and then sit on the bank and wait. He had in his possession a mantle that once belonged to Elijah. Now the answer wasn't in a piece of fabric, but the fabric was simply the evidence of all that had been handed down, exemplified, and taught by Elijah. Now it was his. What would he do with it. Well, the Bible tells us that after he asked the question, he "applied" what he received from Elijah. He smote the water and the river parted.
So where is God; only with a prophet, in a prophet's mantle, or on the bank of a river? Don't be so quick to put God in a box. That is what the king of Syria did in I Kings 20:23, "Their gods are gods of the hills..." In verse 28 God replies with, "Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but He is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver..." Bottom line is God is God everywhere, hills and valleys. David said, in Psalm 139, in my words, "Where can I go from your spirit and where can I hide from your presence?" The answer is nowhere.
Shortly after reading this morning, I encountered a raging river of questions and emotions. Causing the river to swirl and foam were great rocks of disappointment. I have seen God work in the past. Where is He now? Why does He not answer or move on my behalf? Thankfully, these verses were not too distant to come back and help me. You have asked too. But don't just ask and then sit. Take what you have received, the word of God, the example from the lives of others, the testimony of His work in you and apply it. He is there. Where? Where you are. I love these words, "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." And from this side of the river, that must be my Perspective.
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