Thursday, May 7, 2020
And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’ ” And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:13-16
And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’ ” And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:13-16
The God of Enough
This past Sunday the message was about a widow, her young son, and a prophet - Elijah. God had commanded Elijah to go to Zarephath, find the widow, and she would provide food for him. This widow was very poor. She only had enough flour and oil to make one last meal for her and her son, and after that she expected that they would lay down and die. When Elijah found her, she was gathering sticks to make this last meal. When he told her that he wanted her to feed him, she told him of her circumstances. Elijah told her Do not fear – make a cake for me first and then you and your son will have some. He also told her that her flour and oil jar would not be empty until the day God sent rain again. She made the bread, there was enough, and there continued to be enough – just enough – each day.
This past Sunday the message was about a widow, her young son, and a prophet - Elijah. God had commanded Elijah to go to Zarephath, find the widow, and she would provide food for him. This widow was very poor. She only had enough flour and oil to make one last meal for her and her son, and after that she expected that they would lay down and die. When Elijah found her, she was gathering sticks to make this last meal. When he told her that he wanted her to feed him, she told him of her circumstances. Elijah told her Do not fear – make a cake for me first and then you and your son will have some. He also told her that her flour and oil jar would not be empty until the day God sent rain again. She made the bread, there was enough, and there continued to be enough – just enough – each day.
My very favorite part of this story is the part where she has
to put the flour jar back in her cabinet every night empty and believe that God
would provide enough for tomorrow. And God did provide enough for the next day,
day after day, for two years. He always
provides what we need at the time we need it.
He may not provide enough for a month at a time, but for each day. And every day we have to renew our trust and
faith in Him. Sometimes more than once a
day. God, in His infinite wisdom, knows
that if He were to provide everything we would ever need all at once we would quickly
forget how gracious and compassionate He is. He is the God of enough. He provided what the widow, her son, and the
prophet needed each day – but just enough.
He provided what the children of Israel needed each day as they wandered
in the wilderness – but just enough.
Each day He would provide mana from Heaven, but they were only to pick
up what they needed for that day – no more.
And every day, the mana was provided, over and over. He is our provider.
We are so consumed with what we lack, even when our needs do
not go unmet, even when every single day God fills the jar of flour and oil, and
even when we gorge ourselves on the mana He provides. Because we only see what we don’t have. Because
His provision may not be exactly what we want, we don’t see it as a blessing. What He provides is always perfect. He knows perfect way better than we do. He has many ways of providing what we need
and we often only see one solution to a problem. Trust the God who provides, not just his means of supply. He loves us
and cares for us and His provisions and portion are always perfect. He is the
God of enough, and He IS enough.
Do you trust Him to be the God of
enough for you? Would you have the faith
of the widow who trusted that every morning when she woke up that the jar would
have enough flour to make a meal for them for one more day? Faith is hard, especially when we are so
desperate and have no options. Don’t
make God your last option. Make Him your
first. Put your faith in Him to supply
all your needs and leave it in His hands.
And my God will supply every need of yours according to his
riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19
