--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's…" description: "\"Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was not a refresher course in theology but food and sleep... Before God spoke to him at all, Elijah..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg" --- # Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was… ![“Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was not a refresher course in theology but food and sleep... Before God spoke to him at all, Elijah was fed twice and given a good chance to sleep. Only then, and very gently, did God confront him with his error. This is always God's way. Having…” quote by Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg) > “Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was not a refresher course in theology but food and sleep... Before God spoke to him at all, Elijah was fed twice and given a good chance to sleep. Only then, and very gently, did God confront him with his error. This is always God's way. Having made us as human beings, He respects our humanness and treats us with integrity. That is, He treats us true to the truth of who we are. It is human beings and not God who have made spirituality impractical.” [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. God addresses Elijah's distress by meeting basic physical needs before spiritual counsel, showing compassion and respect for human frailty. **In simple terms:** God first gives food and sleep before confronting error. Key Takeaway Address physical needs before deep discussions. Themes compassion humanity spirituality Mood empathetic reflective Type advice spiritual motivational When to use this quote - personal crisis - leadership burnout - mental health recovery Key Concepts integrity humanness practicality Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure we meet basic needs before offering advice? - What does treating people with integrity look like in practice? A Different Perspective Spiritual guidance alone may not heal without meeting bodily needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Elijah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elijah/) [Feds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feds/) [Humanness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanness/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Integrity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/integrity/) [Remedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remedy/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) [Theology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theology/) ## Related quotes > [In the past some of the most influential Jewish, Christian and Muslim theologians, such as Maimonides, Aquinas and Ibn Sina, made it clear that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/in-the-past-some-of-the-most-influential-jewish-christian-and-muslim/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [We need to repent of the haughty way in which we sometimes stand in judgment upon Scripture and must learn to sit humbly under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stott/we-need-to-repent-of-the-haughty-way-in-which-we-sometimes-stand-in/) [John Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stott/) > [We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stott/we-must-allow-the-word-of-god-to-confront-us-to-disturb-our-security/) [John Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stott/) > [I have art. I have music. I have the history, this legacy behind me that I can look up to. This is what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-zorn/i-have-art-i-have-music-i-have-the-history-this-legacy-behind-me-that/) [John Zorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-zorn/) > [Spirituality is man's conscious longing for God. Spirituality tells us that God, who is unknowable today, will tomorrow become knowable and, the day after,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/spirituality-is-man-s-conscious-longing-for-god-spirituality-tells-us/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [To me, religion is an agreement between a group of people about what God is. Spirituality is a one-on-one relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-earle/to-me-religion-is-an-agreement-between-a-group-of-people-about-what/) [Steve Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-earle/) > [Religion is the rules, regulations, ceremonies and rituals developed by man to create conformity and uniformity in the approach to God. Spirituality is God's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/religion-is-the-rules-regulations-ceremonies-and-rituals-developed-by/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [“Maybe what we are faced with in our own day is a similar challenge: to focus not on the question of which human beings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/maybe-what-we-are-faced-with-in-our-own-day-is-a-similar-challenge-to/) [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) > [“That having sex with someone you do not care for feels lonelier than not having sex in the first place, afterward. That it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/that-having-sex-with-someone-you-do-not-care-for-feels-lonelier-than/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Animals are God's creatures, not human property, nor utilities, nor resources, nor commodities, but precious beings in God's sight. ...Christians whose eyes are fixed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/animals-are-god-s-creatures-not-human-property-nor-utilities-nor/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [It's a mistake to think that we have to be lovely to be loved by human beings or by God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rogers/it-s-a-mistake-to-think-that-we-have-to-be-lovely-to-be-loved-by/) [Fred Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rogers/) > [“The kingdom of God is, at its heart, about God’s sovereignty sweeping the world with love and power, so that human beings, each made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/the-kingdom-of-god-is-at-its-heart-about-god-s-sovereignty-sweeping/) [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) > [“If there are meta-beings, a god or gods who did not create the world, then they can tell us what to do the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson-2/if-there-are-meta-beings-a-god-or-gods-who-did-not-create-the-world/) N. D. Wilson > [“God is a different league of person from us, but God is a person like us, not an abstract force or a principle. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-e-goldingay/god-is-a-different-league-of-person-from-us-but-god-is-a-person-like/) [John E. Goldingay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-e-goldingay/) > [The course of human history consists of a series of encounters between individual human beings and God in which each man and woman or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-j-toynbee/the-course-of-human-history-consists-of-a-series-of-encounters/) [Arnold J. Toynbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-j-toynbee/) ## More by Os Guinness > [Too often we forget that the great men of faith reached the heights they did only by going through the depths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/too-often-we-forget-that-the-great-men-of-faith-reached-the-heights/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [There are lots of people depending on the government who are good, honest citizens who have worked all their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/there-are-lots-of-people-depending-on-the-government-who-are-good/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [American views today are weak, confused, and divided. On one side, many progressive liberals still think that we humans are essentially good and getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/american-views-today-are-weak-confused-and-divided-on-one-side-many/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [What is undeniable is that when comforts and convenience sap our energies and idealism, inactivity secretes sloth in to our minds like a poison…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/what-is-undeniable-is-that-when-comforts-and-convenience-sap-our/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [Freedom is not the permission to do what you like. It's the power to do what you ought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/freedom-is-not-the-permission-to-do-what-you-like-it-s-the-power-to/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [“It is realistic rather than cynical to observe that in a fallen world there are degrees of virtue in relation to what is right,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/it-is-realistic-rather-than-cynical-to-observe-that-in-a-fallen-world/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [For the grand and inescapable tradition of western literary classics confronts us with fundamental choices over our understanding of words, reading and art, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/for-the-grand-and-inescapable-tradition-of-western-literary-classics/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [“The story is told of Socrates walking through the market in Athens, with its groaning abundance of options, and saying to himself, "Who would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/the-story-is-told-of-socrates-walking-through-the-market-in-athens/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [By our uncritical pursuit of relevance we have actually courted irrelevance; by our breathless chase after relevance without a matching committment to faithfulness, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/by-our-uncritical-pursuit-of-relevance-we-have-actually-courted/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [Evangelicalism can only remain evangelical if it is passionately serious about truth and theology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/evangelicalism-can-only-remain-evangelical-if-it-is-passionately/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [“Sometimes when I listen to people who say they have lost their faith, I am far less surprised than they expect. If their view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/sometimes-when-i-listen-to-people-who-say-they-have-lost-their-faith/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [“Neither secular progress nor secular progressives have brought the West where they once promised. Nor can they.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/neither-secular-progress-nor-secular-progressives-have-brought-the/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [This is also why it is wrong to treat God as a grand employment agency, a celestial executive searcher to find perfect fits for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/this-is-also-why-it-is-wrong-to-treat-god-as-a-grand-employment/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [We human beings are never happier than when we are expressing the deepest gifts that are truly us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/we-human-beings-are-never-happier-than-when-we-are-expressing-the/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) > [Christ is the only way to God, but there are as many ways to Christ as there are people who come to Him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/christ-is-the-only-way-to-god-but-there-are-as-many-ways-to-christ-as/) [Os Guinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) [Explore all 98 Os Guinness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) Alejandro Taubas > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was not a refresher course in theology but food and sleep... Before God spoke to him at all, Elijah was fed twice and given a good chance to sleep. Only then, and very gently, did God confront him with his error. This is always God's way. Having made us as human beings, He respects our humanness and treats us with integrity. That is, He treats us true to the truth of who we are. It is human beings and not God who have made spirituality impractical.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Os Guinness" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s-depression-was-not-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s-depression-was-not-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a4f/os-guinness-6581_chance_interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s_2277130.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression was not a refresher course in theology but food and…” — Os Guinness", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Os Guinness", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/os-guinness/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Interestingly, God's remedy for Elijah's depression...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s-depression-was-not-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/os-guinness/interestingly-god-s-remedy-for-elijah-s-depression-was-not-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```