“It’s a Miracle: the widow of Zarephath”
I Kings 17:8-16
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus.
Where’s Waldo? is a series of children’s books first published back in 1987 by artist Martin Handford. Today, he’s written as many as seven books with names like, Where’s Waldo Now?, Where’s Waldo? The Fantastic Journey, Where’s Waldo in Hollywood?, and the most recent, Where’s Waldo? The Incredible Paper Chase.
It all started when Handford’s art director, Dave Bennett, asked him to draw a character with strange-looking features that would somehow stand out in a crowd. That’s when he came up with the idea of “Waldo,” a world traveller and time traveller who’s always dressed in blue pants and a red and white striped hat and shirt.
Before long, a host of other characters soon joined him, like a girl named Wilma and her twin sister, Wenda, not to mention Wizard Whitebeard and Woof (the dog). The series became so popular, it spawned movies, television shows and even video games. And if you’re feeling a little crazy, you could join some 4,000 others this October in Colorado Springs where everyone dresses up as Waldo and runs a 5K.
When we think of Waldo, we can’t help but think of a prophet named Elijah. After all, just as soon as he promised King Ahab and Queen Jezebel that the rain would stop and the crops would dry up, he ran as far and as fast as he could—out to hide in the wilderness, by a brook named Cherith. Where’s Elijah? No one knew.
And while he was there, if you remember the story from last Sunday, big, black, silky-feathered ravens, suddenly swooped in. And by the grace and the mercy of God, every morning and every night, those unclean scavengers brought him bread and meat to eat. It was a miracle.
But then, finally, the day came when the brook dried up and God commanded those birds to stop bringing food. So now, where could he go and what would he eat?
That’s when the Lord came to him again and said, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow to feed you.”
Let’s stop there for just a moment. Can you imagine what Elijah must have thought when he heard those words? Zarephath? Sidon? Widow? Maybe I didn’t hear You right. Why on earth would You send me there?
You see, Zarephath was far to the northwest, a hundred miles away, outside the land of promise, the land of Israel. Heathen lived there. Baal-worshippers lived there. And no one there knew and loved the God of Israel.
Besides, the brook Cherith meant “drought” and Zarephath meant, “smelting furnace.” It would be like going from the frying pan into the fire!
And Sidon? That’s the very home of Queen Jezebel. Her father, Eth-Baal, the king of Sidon and the high priest of Baal, probably still lived there. And Elijah would hide right under his nose?
And why find refuge with a widow? Why not send him to some wealthy landowner or a prince, someone with money and means?
Even more, this wasn’t just any widow. This was a poor widow. She had no one to care for her and nothing left.
Listen to what she said: “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.”
Talk about the worst possible host, in the worst possible place, under the worst possible circumstances. Why would God ever send Him there?
Because that’s what our God is like. That’s what it says in Psalm 68. He’s the God of the fatherless and a protector, a defender, of widows. Or think of the words of James chapter 1: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this—to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
So, at God’s command, Elijah walked those hundred miles, outside the land of Israel, all the way to Zarephath.
And what did he find when he got there? Times were tough. After all, there hadn’t been any rain for three years. The earth was parched and cracked. Streams that had never been known to fail, dried up. Trees once so beautiful were nothing but gaunt skeletons. Fields that once blossomed with crops were desert sands. And fire burned anything that was left.
And when Elijah, a foreigner, showed up with his hand out, looking for something, anything, to eat, think of what she could have said. “Now I don’t know who you are or where you’ve come from, but listen. I’ve got nothing left. My husband’s gone. My food is gone. And the one thing I do have left is barely enough to feed me and my son. And then we’ll die.”
But that’s not what she said at all. Instead, she trusted Elijah’s God to provide. As he said: “For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’”
And sure enough, just as the Lord promised, her jar of flour was never empty and her jug of oil never ran dry.
So what does all this mean to teach us? Just as God used a poor widow to accomplish His will, even so He can use us.
Is it any surprise? It shouldn’t be. He once used a man named Gideon, hiding in a wine press, to rout an entire army. He took a man named Moses, schooled for forty years in the wisdom of the Egyptians, and drove him out into the wilderness to watch flocks. And when He called him from that burning bush, Moses said he couldn’t speak. Still God used him to lead His people out of Egypt.
And if there was ever a man who failed, it was Peter. Three times he said he didn’t even know who Jesus was. Still God used him, as empty and broken as he was, to do His will. “Feed My lambs,” He said. “Feed My sheep.”
God loves to fill empty vessels.
And did you notice how much oil and flour the Lord gave them each day? It wasn’t a dozen bags of flour, nor was it a hundred gallons of oil. Instead, every day whenever she opened her jar and poured out her flask of oil, it was just enough. Just enough.
So it is for us. It’s likely that none of us will ever have the best, the brightest, the most luxurious or the most expensive of anything of any kind. But God in His grace will provide all we need.
Isn’t that what Jesus said in the words of Matthew chapter 6? “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you as well.” And that’s what we pray in the words of the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. And give us this day our daily bread.”
Just enough, Lord. Just enough.
As a poem once put it: “I’ve never made a fortune and it’s probably too late now. But I don’t worry about that much, I’m happy anyhow. And as I go along life’s way, I’m reaping better than I sowed. I’m drinking from my saucer, ‘cause my cup has overflowed. Haven’t got a lot of riches, and sometimes the going’s tough. But I’ve got loving ones around me, and that makes me rich enough. I thank God for His blessings, and the mercies He’s bestowed. I’m drinking from my saucer, ‘cause my cup has overflowed. O, I remember times when things went wrong, my faith wore somewhat thin. But all at once the dark clouds broke, and the sun peeped through again. So Lord, help me not to gripe about the tough rows that I’ve hoed. I’m drinking from my saucer, ‘cause my cup has overflowed. If God gives me strength and courage, when the way grows steep and rough. I’ll not ask for other blessings; I’m already blessed enough. And may I never be too busy, to help others bear their loads. Then I’ll keep drinking from my saucer, ‘cause my cup has overflowed.”
One more thing. The story’s told of a speaker who started his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In a room of two hundred people, he asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?”
Hands went up. He said, “I’ll give one of you this $20. But first, let me do this.” Then he crumpled it in his hand, and asked, “Who still wants it?” Hands were still in the air
“What if I do this?” he said. Then he dropped it on the floor and started to grind it into the carpet with his shoe. Then he picked it up, all crumpled and dirty.
“Now who still wants it?” Hands were still in the air.
Then he said: “You have all just learned a valuable lesson. No matter what I did to this money, you still wanted it because it didn’t decrease in value. It was still worth $20.
“Many times in life, we’re dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we’re worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose value in God’s eyes. To Him, dirty or clean, crumpled or creased, you are still priceless to Him.”
What are we worth to Him? You know. Nothing less than the gift of His only Son. Elijah knew it. A poor widow knew it. And I hope you know it too, by grace, for Jesus’ sake.
We thank You, Father, for this great miracle of flour and oil. Help us to remember the many ways You bless us and help us to be a blessing to others. We ask it in Jesus’ name. Amen