This is something I shared in my youth sermon this past Wednesday, but I feel like it can apply to everyone.
How many of you are wearing yourselves out trying to get something to finally come through? Giving more time, more energy, more of your identity, hoping that if you just do enough, you’ll finally feel loved or at peace. Maybe it is a relationship, or a job, or trying to get approval from the people around you. At some point, you’ve got to stop and ask yourself, “Am I trying to please people or Christ?” (Galatians 1:10)
In 1 Kings 18, we meet one of the most well-known prophets in the Bible, Elijah, an ordinary person called by God to be His messenger in a time when the people had drifted.
Israel had seen God’s faithfulness. They had seen Him move, seen Him lead previous generations into the promised land, but now they were in a drought. No rain for years. Everything was dry, and people were desperate. Instead of running to God, King Ahab and Queen Jezebel led the nation to worship Baal, a false god they believed controlled the rain.
So Elijah calls for a showdown. Two altars. One for Baal, one for the Lord. Whichever God answers with fire is the true God.
The prophets of Baal go first, and it’s chaos. They start shouting, dancing around the altar for hours. Nothing happens. They get louder, more desperate, even hurting themselves trying to get Baal’s attention. It’s performance at its peak, effort, emotion, exhaustion, all trying to force a response from something that wasn’t real. (1 Kings 18:26-29)
That’s what idols do. They demand more and more from you but never give anything back. They keep you stuck in a cycle of striving, proving, and performing, hoping that maybe this time it will come through.
For me, that idol was performance. “Maybe if I perform better, God will love me more.” “Maybe if I don’t sin and stay on my best behavior, then God will love me and bless me.” Then, when I did mess up, it was the end of the world. I must not be worthy. I’m a failure. My perfect streak came to an end. I guess I have to wait a couple more days before I can get right with God again. But the truth is that it is the opposite of the gospel.
Ephesians 2:8–9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” You can’t earn, work, or perform better for it. Jesus has already won the victory.
So whether it’s success, approval, relationships, or even trying to “be good enough” for God, it will wear you out.
The truth is, God is not waiting for you to perform. He wants your authenticity. He meets you right where you are, not where you pretend to be.
The Bigger Picture: God loves the true you.
The Bigger Picture 