The Secret Strength Behind Your Voice

By: Pastor José Flávio Macieira — 2025

This reflection is part of the series "The Prophet of Word and Power," inspired by the themes from the book "The Desert Therapy."

The boldness to take a public stand comes not from the volume of your voice, but from the depth of your secret life with God.

“And Elijah... said to Ahab, ‘As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.’” (1 Kings 17:1 NIV)

Have you ever felt your voice is too small to make a difference? Have you looked at the culture around you, the discussions on social media, the pressures at work, and felt intimidated, thinking, "Who am I to speak up?". In a world that demands we have an opinion on everything but "cancels" us if that opinion is unpopular, the temptation to remain silent is enormous. Where, then, does true courage come from?

To discover this secret strength, we need to visit one of the boldest men in the Bible: Elijah. He emerges during one of Israel's darkest periods. King Ahab and his wife Jezebel had made the worship of Baal—a god of prosperity and rain—the official state religion. It was as if, today, an entire nation decided that financial success and materialism are the only gods that matter. In this context, Elijah, a man from the desert with no status or digital "platform," walks into the palace and confronts the most powerful man in the nation. His message was a direct assault on the culture's "god," targeting its supposed area of strength: the rain.

Where did such boldness come from? The answer lies in his introduction: "As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve." Before stating what he would do, he declared for whom he lived. His public courage was the direct result of his private life with God. He was not an "influencer" seeking relevance; he was a servant, secure in his identity and mission. He didn't need Ahab's approval because he already had the approval of the King of the universe, cultivated in the silence of prayer.

This is God's therapy for our fear. He invites us to focus less on the world's noise and more on intimacy with Him. When our identity is firmly anchored in being "servants of the living God," the threats and opinions around us lose their power. The courage to confront today's "Baals"—whether the pressure to conform, the idolatry of success, or the tyranny of public opinion—is born not from a combative temperament, but from a secret life of communion that reminds us of who we truly are and to whom we belong.

Your Next Step of Courage

This week, identify an area where the pressure to conform has silenced your conviction. Instead of focusing on the fear of confrontation, spend time in prayer strengthening your identity as a "servant of God." Ask Him that the security you find in secret may become the boldness you display in public.

The Mirror of the Soul

1. What is the "Baal" (idolatry, anti-biblical value) that pressures you the most in your life today (at work, in your family, on social media)?

2. Have you ever avoided taking a stand for fear of being misunderstood or rejected? What does Elijah's identity, "whom I serve," teach you about this?

3. In a practical sense, how can you deepen your "secret life" with God so that your "public voice" becomes more courageous?

Prayer

Lord, God of Elijah, You are the living God! Forgive us when the fear of others' opinions becomes greater than our fear of You. Build in us a secret life of intimacy so deep that courage becomes the natural result. We want to be known not for our own strength, but as those who serve You. Give us wisdom to know when and how to speak, with a boldness born of love and security in You. In Jesus' name, amen.

Your faithfulness in today's responsibilities is the training for the courage you will need tomorrow.

Loved this reflection? It's the starting point of the 40-day journey we explore in the book "The Desert Therapy: God's Care for the Exhausted Heart." For a full immersion on how God strengthens us in our battles, get your copy today! (Livros | Propagando a Palavra).