Day 104 - 1 Kings 17-19 (Do Not Fear, God Will Provide)
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Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you." ...he called to her and said, "Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand." 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." 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. 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."' (1 Kings 17:8-14)
Humans have a natural inclination to look to people of influence and means when it comes to material provisions. For example, a single mother who could not afford to raise another child and is thinking of putting the child up for adoption would not look to approach another single mother who is as destitute as her. Rather, she might look to a childless couple who has the means to provide her child with a healthy life and a good future.
Upon reading our Scripture passage for today, I could not help but notice the radically different approach God took when He wanted to provide sustenance for the prophet Elijah during a severe famine. God told Elijah to go to a poor widow Zarephath who was dying from hunger along with her son in order to wait out the famine.
When asked by Elijah to bring him a morsel of bread, the widow told him how she only had enough food for a last meal for her and her son before they died of hunger. Elijah told her not to be afraid and assured her that she and her son will not die of starvation but that her little flour and oil she had left will never run out until the famine stopped. And so it happened as Elijah prophesied.
I am amazed at how God acted to provide not just for Elijah but also for the widow and her son. Had God sent Elijah to some rich person to provide for him, the widow and her son would most likely have died of hunger. But, because God sent Elijah to the widow, both survived the famine and both gave glory to God! By sending one destitute person to another destitute person, God enriched both poverty-stricken beings physically and spiritually.
God is also telling us today, "Fear not. I will provide for you as long as you obey what I say." I can testify to this truth because I have been so blessed as the recipient of God's daily provisions in my own life and that of my family. I do not know of even one day when I have lacked anything that I needed since becoming a child of God and since I decided to follow Him in everything He commanded.
Are you fearful about where your next meal will come from or where your next job would be? Maybe what you are fearful of is whether your health nay not allow you to live another year or that your marriage may not last another month. Whatever it is you may be afraid of, do not fear but rather, trust and obey God and He promises to provide for everything you will ever need.
Humans have a natural inclination to look to people of influence and means when it comes to material provisions. For example, a single mother who could not afford to raise another child and is thinking of putting the child up for adoption would not look to approach another single mother who is as destitute as her. Rather, she might look to a childless couple who has the means to provide her child with a healthy life and a good future.
Upon reading our Scripture passage for today, I could not help but notice the radically different approach God took when He wanted to provide sustenance for the prophet Elijah during a severe famine. God told Elijah to go to a poor widow Zarephath who was dying from hunger along with her son in order to wait out the famine.
When asked by Elijah to bring him a morsel of bread, the widow told him how she only had enough food for a last meal for her and her son before they died of hunger. Elijah told her not to be afraid and assured her that she and her son will not die of starvation but that her little flour and oil she had left will never run out until the famine stopped. And so it happened as Elijah prophesied.
I am amazed at how God acted to provide not just for Elijah but also for the widow and her son. Had God sent Elijah to some rich person to provide for him, the widow and her son would most likely have died of hunger. But, because God sent Elijah to the widow, both survived the famine and both gave glory to God! By sending one destitute person to another destitute person, God enriched both poverty-stricken beings physically and spiritually.
God is also telling us today, "Fear not. I will provide for you as long as you obey what I say." I can testify to this truth because I have been so blessed as the recipient of God's daily provisions in my own life and that of my family. I do not know of even one day when I have lacked anything that I needed since becoming a child of God and since I decided to follow Him in everything He commanded.
Are you fearful about where your next meal will come from or where your next job would be? Maybe what you are fearful of is whether your health nay not allow you to live another year or that your marriage may not last another month. Whatever it is you may be afraid of, do not fear but rather, trust and obey God and He promises to provide for everything you will ever need.
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