If you’re looking for feel good, happy-go-lucky, story in the Bible, Elijah probably is not the place to find it.

I believe there is a misnomer that obedience is always going to bring happiness and comfort, and that if I am not happy in my marriage, my church or my profession, I must not be following the Lord.

But Elijah’s story paints a far different picture. In fact, Elijah’s story confirms that standing in obedience to the Lord guarantees we are going to be standing alone, and there’s a solid chance we won’t be very happy doing it.

In 1 Kings 18, Elijah stands alone, in fact, against 450 of the prophets of the false god Baal, but – spoiler alert – the Lord, through Elijah, shows them all up. Hooray, the conquering hero Elijah!

Shortly after this, the Lord ends years of drought and famine in the land, a famine resulting from the wickedness and disobedience of the leaders of Israel. 

Another victory, right?

So what does Elijah get for his troubles? In essence, a target on his back.

After overseeing the wholesale slaughter of countless other prophets, Jezebel tells Elijah, “‘So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.’”

And you thought your job had serious occupational hazards.

Elijah, of course, flees to the wilderness. Sitting alone under a tree, “he asked that he might die, saying, ‘It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.’”

Elijah’s story is just one of countless like it. Daniel’s obedience found him facing down hungry lions. Daniel’s friends wound up in a furnace. David was chased by a jealous king. Stephen was killed at the hands of an angry mob. The apostles were imprisoned, exiled, and most were eventually executed.

And Jesus’s obedience brought him an unimaginably horrific death on a Roman cross.

But you know what? The good news is, in each story above, the end result is never defeat. The lions’ mouths were shut, Daniel’s friends came out of the furnace, David became king. And even the stories that ended in death also resulted in the spread of the Good News for those who needed it most.

And Jesus? I was asked why we call Good Friday “good,” and it’s because that story doesn’t end in death, it ends in new life and resurrection. With Sunday morning came victory.

Even if your current situation has you feeling alone and in despair, never forget to read the end of the story.

Paul writes, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’s sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

How we handle temporary affliction, then, may be the message of hope to a longing soul.

If you find yourself in despair today, do not lose hope. Your story is not over yet.

Daniel Kiewel is a reporter for the Great Bend (Kan.) Tribune. He can be reached at dkiewel@gbtribune.com.