The Drought's Over
by G. Craig Lauterbach, March 2006
Several years ago, God spoke to me regarding His desire to send revival to the Northeast coast of the United States. His words to me came through a dream that I will recount for you. I was standing outside on the property of my home and while gazing into the heavens a light rain began to fall. Within seconds, the wind increased causing the storm to gain momentum. No longer was this a passing shower, but a full-fledged storm manifesting hurricane force winds. Never had I seen such a torrential downpour. As I continued to watch, even the water tables from beneath the earth started to rise. The small stream on the side of my house had now become a rushing river. Rocks, pipes, and other items hidden under the ground were brought to surface level. Still standing in the storm, I then lifted my hands and began to weep. I remember my tears were not tears of sorrow or pain. They were tears of joy and thanksgiving. It was at that moment I knew what God was speaking. He was reaffirming His promise to send the “Latter Rain.” The words spoken by the prophet Joel were being fulfilled before my very eyes. The outpouring I had believed for had finally arrived. Revival had again come to the Northeast. Then suddenly, I awoke finding myself sitting up in bed, with tears streaming down my cheeks, and my hands uplifted in worship. WOW! I have never forgotten that dream.
As much as I desire and pray for this revival, it’s important to understand God not only desires revival for the Northeast coast of America, He also desires this for the entire United States, as well as all the nations of the earth. Over the years, there have been areas where isolated spiritual rain has fallen. We have heard of and some have seen these wonderful visitations from heaven. The spiritual salvation of thousands of lost souls, miraculous healings, powerful deliverances from demon bondages, even the raising of the dead back to life. Entire cities impacted by God’s presence. For this I praise the Lord, but God is not satisfied with isolated revival. His Word proclaims in Habakkuk 2:14, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” God does not want part of the earth. He wants it all! Psalm 24:1 states, “The earth is the Lord’s and all its fullness, the world and all who dwell therein.” It all belongs to God. Everything the devil has stolen, God is in the process of taking back what rightfully belongs to Him. The prayers of faith we have held on to for years are about to be answered. The rain of heaven is on its way.
Let’s turn our attention to I Kings 18:41-46. “Then Elijah said to Ahab, ‘Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.’ So, Ahab went up to eat and drink, and Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, ‘Go up now, look toward the sea.’ So he went up and looked, and said, ‘There is nothing.’ Seven times he said, ‘Go again.’ Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, ‘There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!’ So he said, ‘Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.’ Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So, Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.”
Through the mouth of Elijah the prophet, there had been no rain for 3 years. Now by Divine mandate, Elijah challenges the prophets of Baal. The challenge was, the god who answers by fire, he is God. After the prophets of Baal experience an entire day of failure, Elijah rebuilds the altar of God (which was in ruins), places the required sacrifice on it, drenches the sacrifice with water, and calls on the name of the Lord. Scripture records God then sends fire from heaven, which consumes the sacrifice. After this, Elijah continues by taking a sword and putting all of the prophets of Baal to death. It’s at this point, the Spirit of God tells Elijah, “The rain is coming,” or as I have paraphrased, “The Drought’s Over!”
The Proclamation
In I Kings 18:41, Elijah uses two words, which I believe, set the miracle of rain in motion. Without a cloud in the sky he says, “There is.” Remember, there hadn’t been any rain in three long years. Rivers, streams, and ponds had dried up causing crop failure and the death of livestock and people. The circumstances were saying there isn’t a hint of rain, but Elijah wasn’t looking through natural eyes, he was looking through the eyes of faith, and they were saying, “There is!”
Some of you may be facing surmounting odds. Your hope may be quickly fading because of failing health, legal issues, financial pressures, or even family struggles. I’m here to tell you we serve a God who beats the odds every time. Moses faced overwhelming odds when he stood before Pharaoh, but he recalled the Word of the Lord from that burning bush. When Moses asked God, “Who shall I say has sent me?” God responded, “Tell them I Am that I Am has sent you.” God was revealing to Moses who He is. You see, when we understand who God is, we will be able to face any challenge before us. To the sick God says, “I AM the healer.” To the weak, “I AM strength.” To the troubled,” I AM peace.” To the fearful, “I AM faith.” To the needy, “I AM your provider.” Are you catching it? In other words, God was saying to Moses, “Whatever your need is, I AM the one who can and will meet those needs.”
Elijah understood this, that’s why he said, “There is.” He didn’t waver. He could have responded, there will be, or perhaps, there might be, or even, there could be, but he didn’t. He did what the writer of Hebrews commands us to do as Christians. Hebrews 11:6 states, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is.” Look at it this way. Because God says, I AM, our faith proclaims, HE IS. Faith is adding our verbal agreement to what God has already said about Himself, and when Elijah said these two words “There is,” he was exercising faith. Once this faith was released, the manifestation of God’s promise was set in motion.
Elijah says, “There is the sound of abundance of rain.” Look at the word “sound” in our text. The Hebrew word for sound is also defined as, “a loud proclamation or thundering.” WOW! This excites me. This tells me when we exercise faith; a loud proclamation or thundering is released. Think of it this way. Faith causes an explosion in the spirit realm. It’s like shooting a military canon. The initial shot is loud, and when the shell hits its target, there is a secondary explosion, which cripples and scatters the enemy. Elijah’s faith shot the canon of God and scattered the legions of hell. When this happened, it opened up the gates of heaven so the rain could come. Not just rain, but the abundance of rain! This word abundance in the Hebrew is significant. It means, “multitude, company, crowd, or wealth.” When I read this, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to a dynamic spiritual principle. Why did God move so mightily on Mount Carmel and then with this abundance of rain? Was it because of Elijah’s faith alone, or were there others involved in these miracles? Elijah’s faith played a major role in what God did, but scripture also records there were 7,000 additional prophets who refused to bow their knees to Baal. That’s why in 1 Kings 19:18, God brought correction to Elijah. The abundance of rain was a spiritual response to the prayers of Elijah and the 7,000 prophets. One individual may experience the limelight, but there is always a remnant of others laboring behind the scenes. They may go unnoticed by man, but not by God. Corporate prayer exercised in faith will always give way to the blessings of heaven. The rain in our text is evidence of this.
The Prayer
In verse 41, Elijah instructs Ahab, the King of Israel, to go higher and celebrate because the provision (Rain) is on its way. Notice in verse 42 that Ahab went up part of the way, but then stopped without going to the top. Like many in life, he didn’t go all the way with God. “So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees.” Ahab went up and had a party, whereas Elijah went up to the top and had a prayer meeting. Elijah knew there wouldn’t be any rain without prayer. The proclamation of faith had been made, but prayer was now needed to make it a reality. How many of us are like Ahab at times? We get excited about the promise of God’s blessing and begin to celebrate. We sing, we dance, and shout the praises, but that’s as far as we go. We have our spiritual party instead of continuing up to the top of the mountain. Just as God met with Moses on the mountaintop, He desires to meet with us on the mountaintop as well. This is a place of prayer and intercession. The kind of prayer that is able to tap into and receive the blessing He has promised. The proclamation of faith opens the door, but prayer walks through it. Proclamation without prayer is like a fast car in neutral. You can rev the motor for everyone to hear, but until you put the car in gear, there’s no movement. We can confess and proclaim the Word over and over again regarding the situations we are facing, but unless our proclamation is coupled with Spirit filled prayer, there will be no spiritual movement. Elijah knew this and that’s why he continued in intercession until the Spirit of God began to move.
This is the same principle the church in Acts 12 practiced. Herod had Peter arrested for preaching the gospel, and was preparing to have him executed. Look at the response of the church to Peter’s situation. Acts 12:5 reads, “Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.” The church like Elijah was combining the proclamation of faith with constant prayer until they received their answer, which was Peter’s release. Diligence in prayer is imperative. So many of us give up praying just before the answer is about to come. It reminds me of the time my family and I had just returned home from shopping. As the garage door was opening, we could hear the sound of the telephone ringing from within the house. After shutting off the engine, my wife began to say, “Hold on, we’re coming. Don’t hang up.” When we finally got out of the vehicle, unlocked the door to the house, and picked up the receiver, they hung up. The person on the other end had no idea that we were just about to answer. We were on our way. Our hand was extended and then they gave up. That’s exactly how some Christians are with their prayer lives. They maintain a good confession of faith, but then give up in prayer because the manifestation hasn’t come yet. My encouragement to you is, don’t give up! God is faithful. He will honor His Word.
The Preparation
Look at the words of Elijah to Ahab in verse 44 of our text. “Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.” Why did Elijah say this? A chariot serves two purposes. One, it is a means of transportation, and two; it is a weapon of war. If Ahab had been listening with spiritual ears, he would have heard something beyond the warning for shelter. He would have heard a call to battle and seen the need to prepare himself spiritually for the outpouring God was about to release.
Water does three things; it refreshes, it cleanses, and gives power. It refreshes by hydrating the body and quenching the thirst of man, animals, and vegetation. It provides cleansing of anything it washes over. It also gives power by its ability to facilitate electricity for cities and towns. The mighty Niagara Falls is a good example of this. It provides electricity for the United States and Canada. In out text, God is revealing His desire to refresh, cleanse, and empower us as His people. There is a great revival coming, one greater than any move of God in history. This outpouring will bring such a harvest of souls, that churches will not be able to accommodate the increase. This will be the final outpouring, an end time outpouring, and the last harvest before the return of our Lord.
Elijah said to Ahab, “Prepare yourself.” We as Christians need to hear what God is saying. The rain is coming, but there is a preparation before the rain. Allow the Spirit of God to deal with our hearts and motives. Like the surgeon’s hand, His desire is to heal and restore. Let Him purify every desire. He is a holy and loving God who longs to reveal His glory in and through us. Preparation begins in the heart. As we maintain the standard of His Word and prayer in our daily lives, like Elijah, we will experience the rain of heaven. It’s time to proclaim faith. It’s time to go all the way with God to the top of the mountain. Get ready for the rain. The drought’s over!
— Bible referencing from the New King James Version
