Richard Roberts
God once proclaimed a three-year drought on Israel because its king had built an idol. The resulting famine was severe, and people were desperate. The Lord told Elijah to go to a town called Zarephath, where He said He had commanded a widow to provide food for him.
When Elijah arrived in the city, he learned that the widow had just enough flour and oil left to fix for herself and her son, one last meal. But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid … First make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land’” (1 Kings 17:13–14 NIV).
Can you imagine how Elijah must have felt to take a portion of that widow’s last meal…to ask her to feed him first? She did as Elijah said and fed him first. God kept His promise, and the supply of flour and oil lasted throughout the famine. It’s estimated that the widow was able to make more than a thousand meals for herself and her son. God multiplied her one meal over 1,000 times!
When we sow into God’s work, He multiples it back. But guess who gets the harvest? We do! Elijah didn’t need the widow to feed him. The Lord had already commanded ravens to bring him bread and meat twice a day (1 Kings 17:6). He went to the widow, not to take her last meal, but so God could multiply it and sustain her until the rains came. It was God’s plan for the widow to give to Him first and trust Him for her needs to be met. This is how Seed-Faith works. And it will work for you and me also!
