1 Kings 17:1 "Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, 'As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.'"
1 Kings 17:2-4 "The word of the LORD came to him, saying, 'Go away from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. It shall be that you will drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.'"
1 Kings 17:8-9 "Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 'Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.'"
1 Kings 17:13-16 "Then Elijah said to her, 'Do not fear; go, do as you have said, but make me a little bread cake from it first and bring it out to me, and afterward you may make one for yourself and for your son. For thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'The bowl of flour shall not be exhausted, nor shall the jar of oil be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain on the face of the earth.'" So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days. The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke through Elijah."
Matthew 6:33 "Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you."
Have you ever been at the end of your rope, your resources exhausted, your hope having nearly faded away? To say the least, it's a frightening, uncomfortable place to be. It can also be a place of great blessing and renewed faith.
I was reading about Elijah this morning. He appears abruptly in 1 Kings 17 and makes a startling proclamation to Ahab, the most degenerate, evil king Israel would ever have. He proclaimed an impending draught (and subsequent famine) that would last years. Then he left town.
Over the next few years Elijah's faith was tested to the breaking point; he became so discouraged that he just wanted to die. Have you been there?
God's commands sometimes don't make sense. He told Elijah to go to a stream in the desert where some ravens would bring him food twice a day. Then, when the stream dried up, he sent him to a poor widow who was about to starve to death, and said she would feed him. Elijah found the widow preparing her last meal and asked her to feed him first.
Each time, as Elijah, and then the woman, trusted God's word and obeyed, God miraculously provided for them. In faith they ignored common sense and did what God said to do, and He kept His promise.
Oh, how that encourages me! Even though I have experienced the truth of these words many times over the years, I need to hear them again. Every time I encounter a similar situation, it feels like its the first time. The Enemy tries to get me so focused on the present crisis that I don't remember His faithfulness in times past. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit gently brings to mind those previous experiences and uses them to strengthen my faith enough to trust my Father today.
Dear Lord, thank You for telling me about people like Elijah and the desperate widow of Zarephath. Thank You for using them to renew and strengthen my faith. Please, Holy Spirit, keep reminding me of the Father's faithfulness in my life; keep me ever thankful and trusting. Help me to follow You today, one step at a time. Amen
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