1 Kings 19:8-13
"8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.
9 There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”10 He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” 11 And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a 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. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. 13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”"
We need not doubt that God was teaching Elijah other lessons also in this unusual mani- festation. There is a sense in which it constituted a parable of his own experience. He had in- deed been a prophet of turbulence and drama - he had burst on the scene like a meteor and his actions at Carmel all partook of the spectacular. But now God revealed to him that there are other ways by which He speaks. It may be of interest in this connection to recall that on the day of Pentecost the spectacle and drama of the tongues of fire evoked lively interest and curiosity and the question, 'What meaneth this?' But it was Peter's sermon, much less dramat- ic and spectacular, that made them cry out, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?' The still small voice of God spoke to their consciences in the word of preaching rather than in the mighty rushing wind. It would seem that God was intent upon leading Elijah into deeper things. Still waters run deep, as we say, and this may be the significance of the still small voice. The quiet persuasiveness of the Spirit avails far more than the force of the spectacular. This is a lesson we all need to learn. There is something in our spirits that craves for excitement, and this can be truly disastrous in spiritual work. 'Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe' said Christ, chiding the unbelief of His generation. There are some who are not prepared to wait quietly for God to work, nor to allow Him to work quietly and unobtrusively. They must have earthquake, wind and fire, and when God does not oblige, they set about producing them themselves. But the Lord is not in them. As Alexander Maclaren, that prince of preachers, once said, 'Souls go away admiring, excited or agitated, but there has been no intercourse with God.'