…you killed my father. Prepare to die. 
I love that movie (“Princess Bride” that is) and I’m not that big of a movie buff. My kids just watched it for the first time, it’s so fun to experience things from their perspective again…it’s kinda like my son saying “Hey Dad, have you ever heard of this cool “new” band called Journey?!” 🙂
In the movie, Indigo says that line over and over, and over and over some more!
In 1 Kings 18, Elijah is used by God mightily in the “God Contest” of Jehovah vs. Baal. Needless to say…Jehovah wins. We all know the story of the 2 altars, the prophets of Baal calling on the name of Baal to come rain down fire…calling…no answer…”I’m sorry, the God you have dialed, is not in service…”
…(How funny is Elijah BTW…’maybe he is relieving himself? or sleeping?’ LOL!)
Elijah’s turn. God rains down fire that not only burns the sacrifice, wood, but the STONES, the DIRT, and all the hundreds of gallons of WATER that Elijah had them pour on it to up the ante. Then he goes and single handedly whacks 450 Baal-prophets. Sheesh.
After this amazing victory, what does Elijah do? He runs away, like a scared 4th grade girl after the queen says she is going to kill him. Not only runs…he runs all the way back to Mt. Horeb! He recreates the wandering in the wilderness for 40 days and night.
“Um, dude…didn’t you see what just happened? What the heck?! After all that, you are scared of the Queen?!!”
My favorite scene is when God catches up to Elijah and asks him simply – “What are you doing here?”
Here is the tie in to Indigo Montoya (I know…you thought I forgot…). Elijah answers with a nice mantra he just made up:
10He said, “I have been very(A) jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant,(B) thrown down your altars, and(C) killed your prophets with the sword,(D) and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”
God then “reminds” Elijah just who he is talking to. He brings a great wind which tears the mountains apart (breaking), then an earthquake (shaking), and then a fire (a “taking” by fire). [Thank you, dear Brother Todd Fenners…]
…but God wasn’t in any of these.
Then came a soft whisper, and Elijah went out to the front of the cave.
God asks him again…”Now…what are you doing here?
Still, Elijah gives him the Indigo-mantra – the SAME answer.
10He said, “I have been very(A) jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant,(B) thrown down your altars, and(C) killed your prophets with the sword,(D) and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”
Yeah…I heard that part.
But what are you doing HERE? You should be back THERE. God then sends him all the way BACK to finish the job and rid the land from the influences of Baal.
What hit me was, do we – especially as worship leaders – expect God to ONLY be in the big moments?
In the big show?
Are we even listening for God in the small, soft whispers?
Are we spending time with him alone in his word, in prayer to hear the soft whisper?
How much time to do you spend each day in this way? Or maybe does it get a little more intense right before you are leading worship? It must be a daily, hourly, minute-by-minute seeking of Him!
As worship leaders (and all Christians BTW), it’s VITAL that we get alone with God, each and every single day. Soak in his Word. Listen to good solid, Biblical teaching…be Bereans and dig into it. Be with other brothers who can sharpen and challenge you.
As it’s been said, ‘you cannot lead where you haven’t gone personally.‘
As I saw in a post this week – there are no secret steps. It’s not going to flow out of us if it’s not in us – This is God we are talking about here…pragmatism has it’s limits and God really doesn’t have limits now does He? If aren’t seeking after God with all our hearts, then guess what…we are seeking something else, maybe even ourselves that we are seeking to glorify. Idolatry at its finest.
…and, as illustrated in 1 Kings 18…idolatry is not something we can be involved in, especially as leaders.
…and, let’s be a little quicker than good old Elijah (Indigo?) – to be honest with God.
-M
Mike Ruel 
So.. I was reading one of my devotionals this morning ( the one from Kimberly Kirk) anyhow.. it was on the same passage in Elijah, specifically 1 Kings 19:11-12..
And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, anda great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12And after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.
I think that all too often we are waiting for the BIG GOD experience.. but more often than not he speaks to us in the sounds of a low whisper.. but are we quiet long enough to hear him? do we stop talking and just listen?
Love you..
Happy Birthday BTW
Mel
so, like… maybe I shouldn’t just be waiting around for the strong wind of an A.W. Tozer or the mighty earthquake of a John Piper or even perhaps the fiery message of a Paul Washer or a John MacArthur.
Hmmm… maybe I should always be listening for the whisper of God’s word being ‘breathed-out’ as I read quietly, early, alone in my daily time with Holy One who knows me, chose me and calls me by name?
(not that God isn’t in the Tozers, Pipers, Washers and MacArthurs of my life… but He certainly meets with me, when I come desiring to meet with Him – just the two of us. Sweet! Taste and see, He is good!)
Is it petty of me to simply want to point out that his name is Inigo, not Indigo?
Anyhoo… I tend to get twitchy when I’m meeting with God, and there’s not a “Big Moment” going on… I’m starting to realize that a lot of that is that I’m not willing to take the time to dig deep and review the hurts, the questions, even the joys of daily life. I’ve gotten so used to stuffing them and moving on that it’s hard to remember how to do it. And, yet, that’s where the praise is – where the Gospel makes a difference! And, I think, where transformation really starts happening.
As for worship leaders… Big “YES”… How do we re-train the church to find something real that isn’t always highly emotional, but not the same old singing our favorites by rote? Well, that’s why you’re a worship leader, Mike! You can figure out and then share it with the rest of us. God bless your desire to lead His people in worship – may it bring the fruit of worship from a genuine love of the Savior and a sincere faith that He is all He says He is and can do all He says He can do! Amen!