I was reading 1 Kings 19:3-18 today. It’s funny how I can read a passage, and while I get the gist of the story, something seems to snag me. Well today’s “snag” was the mention of a “broom tree”.
The story was that Elijah was fleeing from Ahab, just following the showdown between himself (God, really) and the priests of Baal. God had prevailed (no surprise there), and the priests of Baal were dead. The story seemed quite complete to me, so I had to wonder why God chose to have the specific tree noted in that story? He could have just said, Elijah ran away and rested under a tree, but He didn’t. Well, I did a little research and found some interesting facts about a broom tree.
Did you know a broom tree was a “shrub” with a broad canopy? Its branches were used as kindling for cooking stoves, and coals were made from its roots, trunk, and branches. Why? Because broom tree embers retain their heat for long periods after they appear to be dead ashes. It is reported that travelers would form a layer of broom embers, cover it with 2-4 inches of sand, and use it as a warm mattress on cold desert nights. The broom tree blooms in the wet season, with leaves and little white flowers that emit a honey-like fragrance.
Out of all that information, what impacted me most was that broom tree embers retain their heat for long periods after they appear to be dead ashes. Elijah would have known that. I wonder if God was trying to tell Elijah something, having him lay under that broom tree?
Elijah was tired. He was done, ready to give up. He even asked God to take his life. BUT God knew that there were still things left for Elijah to do. So God ministered to Elijah under a broom tree – a tree whose embers appeared to be dead when there is still heat in their ashes. God encouraged him and then gave him a job to do.
My takeaway – When you are spent, when you feel alone, when you feel useless, lay down and sleep, eat something — even rest and eat again if needed, but remember that for the child of God, there is always heat left in your embers. Rest, then get up and keep going.