Expect Great Things of God

"O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command. O LORD, answer me! Answer me so that these people will know that you, O LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself." 1Kings 18:36-37 (NLT)

The whole purpose of the showdown on Mt. Carmel was to confront the people of Israel with their idolatry. When asked to choose between the God of their fathers and Baal, they couldn't make up their minds. So--Elijah called for a contest between Yahweh and Baal. Whichever god sent down fire and consumed the sacrifice would be the true God. After the 450 prophets of Baal had failed to coax their god to act, it was Elijah's turn. That's when he did the unexpected-- he poured water on the altar, on the wood and the sacrifice, and then dug a trench around it and filled that with water. He called on God and expected God to do something great in response, something that only God could do. And God came through--the entire sacrifice and everything around it was consumed by fire. How many of us have that kind of faith? Do we act like our God is big and able to do anything, or do we really not expect much from Him?
George Mueller once said, "Expect great things of God and great things He will do!"