The sun was at its peak of the day, and there was much anticipation and excitement in the air! All those living in the land of Israel were gathered on Mount Carmel, at the command of King Ahab, to witness a miraculous contest. On that day, these spectators were about to see who was indeed the true God.

King Ahab had provoked God by allowing the people of Israel to forsake their worship of God and to worship what at that time was perceived to be the supreme god over all other gods - Baal. In his anger, the prophet Elijah declared that there would be no rain for three years. Unable to bear the brutal force of the drought that followed and enveloped the land during this period, Ahab summoned Elijah, who ordered the King to bring everyone together to put Baal and God to the test. The priests and Elijah built their altars and prepared offerings of sacrifices to Baal and God. The test: “Which altar would be Ignited by fire and which sacrifice consumed thereon?”

Suspense filled the air as the people watched to see who would win the contest. After many hours of shouting and the cutting of their bodies, the cohort of 450 priests of Baal finally relented just before the time of the evening sacrifice. Elijah then set out to drench his altar and the area surrounding it with water. Next, he prayed to God to reveal His power for all to see.

Instantly, a raging, consuming fire came down from heaven and ignited the altar, sacrifice, and the entire trench of water surrounding the altar. This miraculous act of God brought about an immediate change in the lives of everyone present. Every knee bowed, and tongue confessed that indeed the Lord is God! Several factors motivated the power of God to ignite that fire:

1. The Power of Prayer – Elijah obeyed God and had an effectual prayer life. He often communed with God, which helped ignite his spiritual life and helped him to receive guidance from God. Constant prayer is vital in helping to ignite our prayer life.

2. Trust in God – Proverbs 3:5-6 admonishes us to “Trust in the Lord with all our hearts and to lean not to our own understanding…” Elijah chose to trust God and trust begins with a willingness to depend totally on God. This means we must fully surrender ourselves to God as a living sacrifice. In Psalm 51:12, David prayed for God to grant him a “willing spirit.” Trusting God with our whole hearts will help to ignite our prayer life.

3. Constant Reminders of God’s Faithfulness – Elijah remembered God’s faithfulness and how He kept him when he felt afraid and alone. Deuteronomy 31:8 says, “He will never leave us nor forsake us.” Constantly reminding ourselves of God’s faithfulness and love towards us will ignite our prayer lives.

In this year’s International Day of Prayer sermon, Dr. Linda Koh tells us that prayer will ignite and positively impact our lives by bringing about change, hope, unity, and forgiveness. Today, I invite you to follow these steps intentionally to ignite your prayer life to the Honor and Glory of God.

Darlene Deveaux, Women’s Ministries Department