"The LORD God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and so man became a living being" (Gen 2:7). There is no better place to start a discussion of contingency than with the beginning where it is apparent that humanity did not spring up on its own. Genesis 2:7 is a powerful introduction to this topic because here we see that humanity is nothing but inanimate clay without the sustenance that God provides. To begin, we see that God formed humanity out of clay. This is portrayal of God as a potter is a striking image because we can instantly related to the beautiful creations that potters have made throughout the centuries. For those with a background in pottery or those that have a working knowledge of the time and skill it takes to create something on the potter's wheel, this image takes on even more meaning. The potter does not haphazardly throw some clay on the wheel and then spin it a few times, no, the potter must take great care to work the clay, shape the clay so there are no weak spots, and use a light touch because the wrong pressure could make the clay revert back to a pile of clay. In the first part of this line we can infer, using the image of the potter, that God took care in form humans out of clay. These clay creations are then not left as inanimate objects for God to play house with. Instead, he animates them with his breath, the breath of life. This is the animating factor for humankind. It is not our breathing of the air that in fact keeps us alive, it is only because God first breathed into us that we are even able to be living, breathing creations, a living being.
Genesis 2 continues on to explain that God provides a place for humans to inhabit in the garden of Eden. However, God knows that the lone man is not good (v. 18), so he creates animals of the land and air, but "none proved to be the suitable partner for the man" (v. 20). It is not said explicitly here, but we can understand that it is God that makes this determination that the animals were not suitable partners. So God creates the woman as a partner for the man. My reason for this second paragraph is to show that it can be understood in Genesis 2 that God knows what humanity needs. Humanity is contingent on God for its existence, even for its most basic needs.
Now that we have a base understanding of contingency in Genesis, I want to now write a little bit about Elijah in 1 Kings 18-19. In these two chapters, we see Elijah go from a triumphant high to rock bottom. This is powerful story, I believe, because it can be seen in our own lives today. In 1 Kings 19, we see Elijah hit a low in his earthly journey. After his triumph in chapter 18, Elijah's life is threatened by Jezebel, and he "was afraid and fled for his life, going to Beer-sheba of Judah" (19:3). From there he ventured on alone "a day's journey into the desert, until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. He prayed for death" (v. 4).Here we see Elijah is unsure of his safety because of the threats being made against his life by Jezebel. He has a very human reaction: fight of flight. He flees and leaves his servant to be alone. He appears to be in a such a state where he feels that he has no fight left in him.
Before I move on, I want to touch on a psychological model of survival. According to Maslow's Hierarchy of needs, human beings cannot move along the hierarchy until basic needs have been met. At the very foundation of this hierarchy are the biological and physiological needs: food, water, sleep, air, shelter, warmth. The second level is safety needs. It is clear that Jezebel is threatening Elijah's safety, so he is thrown back to the basic level of needs. Elijah falls asleep underneath the broom tree and "an angel touched him and ordered him to get up and eat" (v. 5). The angel provided him with a hearth cake and water (v. 6). He feel back asleep, but the angel woke him up again saying, "Get up and eat, else the hourney will be too long for you!" (v. 7). I point this out because it seems that God knows what Elijah needs and therefore provides it for him, much like he did with the created man in Genesis. Human beings are completely contingent on God. Elijah could not continue on his journey because his basic biological and physiological needs were not met. It was not until he slept, ate, and drank that he was able to continue his journey.
Once Elijah makes it to the mountain of Horeb, he is confronted by his call and his mortality. "But the word of the LORD came to him, 'Why are here, Elijah?' He answered: "I have been most zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts, but the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life'" (v. 9-10). Here Elijah explains that he has been trying to answer and live out his call that he received from God. In doing so, he has put his life in jeopardy for now people want him dead. It seems as if he is drained. He is running on empty and he is not sure what to do now, how to proceed from this point. In this moment, he turns to the one thing that he trusts: the LORD. Without actually saying it, the passage is acknowledging the contingency of the human being. All of these situations are beyond Elijah's control. He has hit the bottom and he is unsure of what his future might hold.
God does not leave Elijah to fight a battle that he cannot win on his own. Instead he says, "Go outside and stand on the mountain before the LORD; the LORD will be passing by" (11). Just from this statement the reader does not know what God has in mind for Elijah, but one thing is clear, God is going to reveal himself, or at least a glimpse of himself to Elijah. What follows is a striking description of power and might: "A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD—but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake—but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire—but the LORD was not in the fire" (v. 11-12). All of these powerful forces of nature make themselves known to Elijah, yet God is not within them. Following all of these extravagant illustrations of power comes "a tiny whispering sound" (v. 12). Elijah does not react to the wind, the earthquake, or the fire, but at the tiny sound of whispering, he hides his "face in his cloak" (v.13). Powerful and mighty as God is, he does not overwhelm. He meets his people where they are. This is the message that we can take from this particular passage. In terms of our contingency, when we hit rock bottom and are looking for signs of God's presence in our lives, we should not only look for major instances of power and might, but instead we should be willing to look to the small and comforting spaces where God is.
We must trust in God to meet us where we are and provide for us. He met Elijah under the broom tree through his messenger providing food and water, and he met Elijah in the tiny whispering sound amidst the forces of nature. Both Genesis 2 and 1 Kings 18 show us that God knows what we need and will take care of us, we just need to trust in him. We should not be afraid of our contingency, but instead acknowledge it. And when we hit a bump in the road or rock bottom, we can approach God knowing he will ask, "Why are you here?" (v. 9,13) and we can have the strength to tell him and know that he will not fail us. This is how we come to terms with our contingency.
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