What Doest Thou Here?

1 Kings 19:9
"And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?"

 God is all knowing, all present, and all powerful. He has no need to ask Elijah anything. This question is not for God to gain knowledge, but, like most questions God asks, it is designed to cause us to ponder.

 "What are you doing here?"

 The answer may at first have seemed quite obvious, Elijah was fleeing for his life from an insane, evil queen. But still God asks. The surface reason is rarely the true reason.

 We see that Elijah answers God immediately with a very specific reason. Elijah has apparently given it some thought. But was that the real reason?

 Is God asking me a question similar to this? He does not need an answer, He already knows. He is asking to show you something. What might that be?