Submit 1

1 Kings 17:13-14

When I was younger I had a friend who liked to assemble model airplanes and model ships. He complained to me once that the instructions were not always as clear as they could have been. He said they often began with “The first thing to do is glue Part A to Part B,” which he would do. Returning to the instructions he would read “Before doing that, however, sand the edges of both pieces.”

To be successful it was important to do things in exactly the right order. We see the same concept in the story of Elijah and the widow. Elijah has been sent by God to the city of Zarephath where God said Elijah would meet a widow who would provide for him. When Elijah encounters the widow he asks for food, but the widow claims she has just enough to feed her son and herself, and then they will die.

What encouragement does Elijah offer first? What instructions does he give? Who is to be fed first? What has God promised?

It always strikes me how pushy Elijah is in this story. He meets a woman gathering sticks to build a cook fire and he interrupts her to ask for a drink. She generously goes to get it, but then Elijah pushes for more – asking for a piece of bread.

The poor woman explains that she is essentially out of food – just enough flour and oil to make a tiny meal for her son and herself. Then she plans on dying.

Elijah doesn’t seem to be sympathetic. He tells her not to be afraid, and then tells her to make bread for him first. That seems rather selfish.

It would be difficult to obey such a request from a stranger. The woman was asked to give up her final meal so that a stranger could be fed. But that is exactly what she is willing to do.

The Lord promised that the flour and oil would not run out for her. She would have what she needed. The point here is that the woman needed to honor God first by taking care of Elijah, God’s prophet. By honoring God first, by being willing to submit to the will of God, the woman was taken care of.

DAILY CHALLENGE: What will it take for you to have the faith the widow had?