The Widow

The Widow at Zarepath

1 Kings 17:8-24

I love the song Trust and Obey.  In difficult times the words of this song echo in my heart, “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” What does one do when one is at the end of one’s rope?

In 1 Kings 17, the famine in the land is great as we meet Elijah. The brook has dried up and the ravens have stopped feeding him. He is on the run as his life is being pursued by the wicked Queen Jezebel. God tells Elijah to travel to Zarepath. In the midst of this Baal worshipping city, the Lord tells Elijah, “I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” Elijah obeys and finds the widow at the gate of the city gathering sticks and he says, “Please bring me a little cup of water, that I may drink, and bring me the 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 and die.” She is at the end of her rope.

“As surely as the Lord your God lives,”

What famine are you facing? Maybe you are a single mom of two children and one is suffering with autism and the other child feels that you treat them differently and this is causing you to have tension in your parenting relationship. Perhaps you have lost your job and even though you flood the community with your resume there are no interviews. Maybe you are wondering where God is and spiritually you are suffering a dry time and you do not feel God hears your prayers. Perhaps, your teenager is facing an unwanted pregnancy. Maybe your days are filled with despair from depressing thoughts because of financial problems, marital problems, or physical problems.

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek

Beloved, the widow did not hesitate to help the stranger. What is God asking you to do in your present circumstance? She obeyed and was rewarded, her jar of flour and oil never ran out. Later toward the end of the famine, facing a crisis of faith her son dies. She entrusts her unresponsive son to Elijah. Elijah prayed and her son’s life was restored. God became real to her that day, God saved her son and her soul.

Father God, I ask that you meet each woman who is reading this devotion that is experiencing a famine. Lord I ask that you meet her needs emotionally, physically, spiritually, and financially. Lord just as you protected Elijah from Queen Jezebel and the widow and her son, protect us. Today, Lord let us trust and obey.

Beloved, when at the end of your rope, tie a knot and just say Jesus. 

just say Jesus

 

 

 

 

 

One Response to The Widow
  1. Yolanda DeLoach
    February 27, 2015 | 7:28 am

    Hi Diana, some of the hardest times to have faith is when we’re at the end of our rope. But our faith grows when we get through it and see that God was working all along. Blessings on your day!