1 Kings 17: 8-16
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.” 11 And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”
12 So she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”
13 And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’”
15 So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.
Here is this widow, she has only a handful of flour, and a little bit of oil left in her jar. It is just her and her son… that is all they have left… She is gathering sticks to build a fire so that she can use the last of what they have to make one last bit of bread, eat it and die… A stranger (Elijah) approaches her and asks her to bring him water. She goes to get it and he calls after her, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” Can you imagine… you and your child have just enough for one last, small meal before you die because you have nothing left, and now a stranger is asking you to share it with him… but Elijah tells her not to fear, share what she has with him, the Lord has sent him, and God has said that her bin of flour shall not be used up, and her jar of oil will not run dry until the Lord sends rain on the earth.
This woman had nothing extra to give. She had very little, yet the Lord asked her to give of the little she had. She stepped out in faith and obeyed. The oil and flour did not run out! God is faithful. He simply cannot be, less than He is. God may be asking you to step out further… into the “impossible”… you may have little… little time, little energy, little money. You may feel you have nothing left to give, yet the Lord may be asking you to do just that…. perhaps it is to adopt a child into your family, or help another family bring home their child. Maybe it is to help clean someone’s home because you know they have been ill and not able to do so. Maybe it is to read the Word of God, the Bible to someone you know whose eyes are failing them… Maybe it is to hit the streets and share the Good News of Jesus Christ with those who are passing by you, even though all you want to do is sit on the sofa and rest for a while because you are exhausted… What ever the Lord is asking of you… HE will give you what you need to do it. If He is asking for all you have… when you submit and obey, be assured that He will meet you there… your flour will not run out and your oil will not run dry… He is faithful! To God be the glory!
