Elijah walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb. There he came to a cave, where he took shelter. But the word of the LORD came to him, “Elijah, why are you here?” (1 Kings 19:8b-9).
Why are you here?
When God poses this short but penetrating question, Elijah is in crisis. He is struggling with his vocation as a prophet and frankly wants to give up. Surely God already knows this, but still, God greets Elijah by asking, “Why are you here?”
On the surface, the question seems circumstantial:
Elijah, why have you come to me now?
But I wonder if God also intends it on a deeper level:
Elijah, why are you here – on this earth?
Perhaps God knows that if Elijah can stop, reflect, and reconnect to the driving purpose of his life, he will discover how to press on. Perhaps, with four little words, God empowers Elijah to re-claim his call. Perhaps those very same words can inspire our discernment today.
Why are you here?
The question points to something astounding and miraculous: God created you with purpose. Your life holds profound meaning. You are called and chosen.
The question can also seem daunting. Claiming our call requires courage. But even more daunting is the thought of a life not fully lived. God beckons us beyond the routine into the mission of the reign of God – and there is a piece of that mission that is uniquely yours.
What would it look like for you to stop, reflect, and connect to the deepest purpose of your life? Maybe you can commit to regularly cultivating quiet within yourself and letting God’s question probe your heart. Or, if you prefer, you can turn the question back to God in an open-ended, open-hearted prayer: “God, why am I here?”
No matter what, our loving God is really the source of the call and our response, which unfolds over a lifetime. As with Elijah, God’s word impels us. God’s grace empowers us. And God’s hurting world needs us to take the question seriously:
Why are you here?
