Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But 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
After the brook had dried up, the Lord had told Elijah to go to a small town where a widow would feed him. Elijah found the widow and told her to get him some water and some bread. First the Lord had fed Elijah from the mouths of ravens. Now he is telling Elijah to get food from a poor widow. That couldn’t have been an easy task for Elijah because widows then were not well cared for (hence the many commands in the Old and New Testaments to care for the poor). Now the Lord wants the poor widow to care for His prophet. What a change it must have been.
But Elijah walked in boldness. He knew that God had told him to do something and spoke accordingly. He promised the widow that she would have enough food until it rained again. And it’s no surprise to us that God, in fact, did provide.
Once again God provided, this time through another unlikely source: a poor widow. It probably would have been the last place we would have sought food and drink, but not God. Continue to praise God for his blessings in your life. As the hymn says, “count your blessings, name them one by one.” List out your blessings then praise God for them.