Elijah went to the right widow, but she had no provisions to provide for the prophet. She just had a handful of flour in a bin and a little oil in a jar to make one last meal before dying. She was getting ready to eat her last meal and then die. God said He commanded the widow, but the widow was unaware of the Lord’s command. The widow was about to eat her last meal and then die, she was not aware of the Lord’s command to take care of the prophet. The flour was used up, and the oil was about to dry up. She did not have any provisions to support herself.
All her provisions have dried up in the famine. The widow herself was in desperate need of assistance, but God sends someone to take refuge in her home rather than to help her. An almighty God sends His prophet to seek refuge in the person who is unable to feed herself. Elijah used to stand before kings but took refuge in the home of a widow. The Lord sent Elijah to a broken person, who in her brokenness was incapable of supporting herself. The Lord did not send Elijah to a wealthy person with plenty of provisions, but to a widow with only a handful of flour and a small amount of oil.
This is the Lord’s way of providing for His people. God uses the broken, unworthy, and incapable people to meet His people's needs, so that when those needs are met, God receives all the glory. This is one of ways in which God involves broken people to be part of His plans. Broken people create an avenue for God to show compassion and perform a miracle. There were many widows in Israel, but Elijah was sent to the widow at Zarephath by God. God carefully selects the most broken person to help His people, ensuring that the needs of both the broken person and God’s people are met. Today, if God brings His people into your life to help them, in spite of your lack, help them so that God can meet the needs of God's people as well as your own. When you support God’s people in your lack, it creates an avenue for God to do a miracle in their lives as well as yours.
When Elijah arrived on the scene, the situation was completely opposite of what God said. Elijah arrived expecting his provisions would be met, but found that it was completely opposite. The widow had no provisions, was having her last meal and was in desperate need. The situation was like Elijah had been sent to help the widow rather than the widow helping Elijah. God sent his prophet to a person who was in great need. It seemed as if the widow desperately needed the provisions for her survival more than Elijah. The provisions of oil and flour were the widow's final chance of survival.
How did Elijah respond or react when he arrived on the scene? Was he disappointed? No .. Instead of being disappointed, he saw the situation through the prophetic eyes of faith. When circumstances contradicted what God had said, Elijah saw God's word fulfilled through prophetic eyes of faith. Elijah saw through the eyes of faith that the handful of flour and oil would be replenished or refilled automatically and would never run out. Prophets' eyes do not see the future or the past, but rather the fulfilment of God's word. Prophets' eyes mainly see God’s word fulfilled.
When Elijah arrived on the scene, he took God at His word. He saw with the eyes of faith that a handful of flour and a little amount of oil would be sufficient to take care of them through the famine. Elijah through the eyes of faith saw God’s word fulfilled. Taking God at His word means seeing God's word fulfilled and taking actions towards it, even when the circumstances are against it. Elijah took steps to see God's word being fulfilled.
During the famine, the Lord not only take care of Elijah, but also the widow and his son. When the widow gave the prophet what little she had, it turned out to be a replenishing miracle. The bin of flour has not been used up, and the little jar of oil has not gone dry, till the day the Lord sent rain on the earth. The widow who was about to have her last meal survived the famine when she provided for the prophet and fulfilled God’s command. God would have sent Elijah to someone who had all provisions or to the king's palace, but God sent the prophet to the widow because God wants to take care of the widow.
So many times, God sends His servants to the most broken people and expects the most broken people to help and support His servants. It’s not only for helping the servant of God, but when you help, God will help and sustain you through your difficult season. It's God's way of helping you as well as his servants. In addition to meeting the need of His prophet Elijah, God meets the need of the widow. It's a two way miracle. A miracle for the servant of God(Elijah) and a miracle for the benefactor(widow).
The verse in the bible looked like Elijah’s need was meet by widow, but the provisions actually met both the widow's and Elijah's need. During difficult situations like famines, God's thoughts are always on His people and broken people.
If God says something, even when the circumstances were utterly opposite, the prophets through their eyes of faith saw how God’s word will be fulfilled. They take steps in the direction of fulfilment of God's word. God's word is always correct and never wrong. In a situation if God’s word is not happening, they through their eyes of faith take necessary steps to fulfil it. They always strive to fulfil God’s word. In this situation, Elijah saw the automatic refilling or replenishment of flour and oil.
Similarly, if God has spoken something and when the situation is not happening as God described, what do you do? Do you merely see the unfulfilled situation or do you see the fulfilment of the word through the eyes of faith? If God has given you a word, it will surely be fulfilled. We must sometimes see through the eyes of faith and take steps towards fulfilment of the word.
