Beware This Perspective
Romans 11:2-4 NKJ
God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, "Lord, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life"? But what does the divine response say to him? "I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal."
Paul is quoting the Old Testament prophet Elijah, as the prophet was complaining to God. Elijah was lamenting the fact that all of Israel had turned against God. He was telling the Lord that the nation of Israel had torn down God's altars and killed God's prophets. While some of that was true, what Elijah said next was inaccurate.
Elijah declared himself to be the only one who was living for God. He said he was the only one doing the right thing, and the people of Israel were looking to kill him too. The problem with this perspective was that Elijah was wrong. Israel was not trying to kill him, just Jezebel and her husband, Ahab. They were the power couple ruling Israel during the time of Elijah, and they were evil. Jezebel had threatened to kill Elijah because he had killed the prophets of her false goddess Asherah. It wasn't Israel trying to kill Elijah; it was one couple, and really, one woman. So Elijah had it wrong.
Elijah also had it wrong with declaring himself the only one serving God. And this reveals the root of Elijah's problem. He has that lone-martyr mentality that he is the only one who is doing right. Everyone else has abandoned God but him. But God corrects him by declaring that there were seven thousand who had not bowed their knee to a foreign God. So Elijahs' numbers were way off. He was wrong about Israel trying to kill him and wrong about being the only one serving God.
Application
There is a perspective that is easy to fall into, but it does not benefit us at all—feeling sorry for yourself. Whenever you start down the road of thinking you are the only one who is doing the right thing and everyone else is wrong, beware. That mentality is not going to put you in a good position.
One of the key features of the feel-sorry-for-yourself mentality is exaggeration. Elijah exaggerated his commitment to God. Declaring he was the only one was way out of line. When we exaggerate, we must keep in mind that God knows the whole story. He knows what we do not know, sees what we do not see. So when your thoughts go to things like "I am the only one who cares." Or "I am the only one who is doing anything," beware, your perspective is off. You want to avoid feeling sorry for yourself; it throws your entire perspective out of whack. We have all done it, but in the words of Dr. Phil, "How's that working for you?" Instead, take your care to the Lord and let His Holy Spirit and His Word bring you a perspective based on truth. It's a much better long-term strategy.
Prayer
Lord, You have been too good to me for me to feel sorry for myself. Help me to see things from Your healthy, truth-based perspective.