- 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. 1 Kings 17:13 – At first, this verse seems very basic, Elijah asking a lady to make him some cake then to make some for her family afterwards. Let’s remember the context here though. Israel is being punished for their sinfulness by a multi-year drought. There is no water, and food is scarce at this time. Elijah then walks into a city that is not a God-following place and finds a gentile widow that is so poor that her plans were to use the last bit of ingredients she had to make a small cake for herself and her son to eat and then die. That poor widow is the one Elijah tells to make a cake for him…and she did. Yes, she did have the words of Elijah telling her that God would provide for her and her son flour and oil until the drought was over, but for this gentile woman living in a land of idolatry, these words likely sounded too good to be true and this prophet just wanted her last bit of food for himself. She though faithfully followed the command of Elijah, and the words of God were true and her ingredients didn’t run out. What faith we see come from this poor, gentile widow who was about to die! Would such faith be found in us? If God were to ask you to give up something, would you? Would you believe His promises that He’d provide for you beyond the sacrifice? Has God ever failed to keep His word or failed to provide for your need? Why then are we so afraid to give God our last “cake?” We will never experience the miracle beyond the sacrifice if the sacrifice never takes place. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3061
- 1 Kings 17 Daily DEVO After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!” 1 Kings 17:17-18 – Most likely in this moment the jars were filled with flour and oil. Why does that matter at the time of her son’s death? Those jars were reminders that God can provide in ways we could never imagine. Never let the presence of a new struggle blind you from the presence of the blessings you already have in God. We too will find ourselves in difficult seasons like this widow, but we must remember in those seasons that in God we have life, grace, and the provision of Heaven with us. Keep your eyes open to what you have in God, especially when the enemy tries to close your eyes to all that. You have all you need for anything you will go through in this life in God. Keep focused on that truth and even the darkest of nights won’t seem so bleak. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1018
- And the word of the Lord came to him: “Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” So he went and did according to the word of the Lord. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan.” 1 Kings 17:2-5 – Sometimes the directions God gives sound odd, but will we remain faithful still? Here God said ravens were going to bring him food to eat. Later that he was to live with a widow and she was to provide him food. Despite the oddness of the commands, Elijah obeyed. Do you know what happened when he followed the commands that didn’t make much sense? Elijah was taken care of exactly how God said he would be. In our story God is going to call us to do things or say things that just doesn’t make much sense. Like forgiving the person that hurt us or even packing things up to be a missionary somewhere. Commands that in the moment don’t fully make sense but when followed will result in us being exactly where God wants us. Be available then for odd commands. God has a purpose behind what He does and what He calls us to. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2201
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