provider

When a famine struck the land of Israel under the command of God, given by order to Elijah, even Elijah needed directions to survive.  He was sent to a brook that flowed into the Jordan river for a certain amount of time, and then to an unlikely provider, a widow at Zarephath.  Elijah needed directions to his provisions, just like we do today.

“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.”  I Kings 17:8-9

What this teaches us is that the land of plenty can instantly turn into a place where nothing grows and people are starving to death.  What this also tells us is that even the most spiritual people need God’s directions in order to survive.  This story trains us spiritually to think different, because the last place most of us would ever have gone for provisions was the widow.  And even the widow in this story needed someone to come along to draw out her faith in God.  She thought she was preparing her last meal for herself and her son and that Elijah was mocking her.  But when Elijah said, “For thus says the LORD God of Israel,” her faith must have been stirred.  What I see is that when we get to the place where we have nothing left and desperation sets in, that can also be the place where we see God step in and miraculously provide.

At any moment all the blessings and provisions we have experienced in our lives can be dried up, and we will need to remember what Elijah did and what the widow did to survive.  Elijah stepped in obedience to God to find his provisions and the widow exercised faith in the living God.  At the end of every step of obedience to God there is provision, and in exercising faith, what little we have can be multiplied.  Think about it, this is still how God works today, He hasn’t changed.  When we put God’s kingdom first in our lives, He will always be faithful to supply our needs.