Daniel 5-7
2 John
“‘Your servant has nothing there at all,’ she said, ‘except a small jar of olive oil.’ Elisha said, ‘Go round and ask all your neighbours for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few.’” 2 Kings 4:2-3
What if living when life gives us less is a chance to lean into a spiritual community in a way that we have never had to before? In 2 Kings 4:1-7, a widow with a mountain of debt approached the prophet Elisha in desperation, begging for his help. He asked her what she had and she told him nothing, except a jar of olive oil. Elisha then instructed her, “Go round and ask all your neighbours for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side” (2 Kings 4:3-4). Elisha’s instructions to the widow shifted the focus from herself to those around her, and what they had to offer.
Although the widow disclosed her need privately to Elisha, his solution required her to go around to all her neighbours, asking for their help. The fact that Elisha specifically told the widow not to ask just for a few meant she
needed to radically depend on the neighbours to give generously; it was not just a small favour, but a big ask. Some of us may feel ashamed to tell other people our business, let alone ask them for help with our struggles, but God has placed us in community, where our fear should not keep us from reaching out to others and saying, “I need your help.”
After the widow received the jars, she began filling them with oil, until every last jar was filled. Elisha then told her, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left” (2 Kings 4:7). On the other side of the little that the widow had was a miracle, not just in the home of the widow, but in the whole community because they all had a part in this amazing work of God!
In this story, maybe some of us are the neighbours and we are challenged to give generously to help others in need. What if, at the widow’s pleading, we hoarded the empty jar in our home? We would have missed out on being part of the solution to the widow’s crisis. With the help of the neighbours, the widow was able to pay her debts by selling the oil and living on what was left. This tells us that God is not only able to use the little that we think we have to decrease deficit gaps but also lead us towards a path of flourishing.
Imagine what the widow’s life was like in the community after this experience!
Lord God, thank You for the community that You have placed around me. Please give me the boldness and courage to ask for help when I am in need and to give generously to those who ask.
2 John
“‘Your servant has nothing there at all,’ she said, ‘except a small jar of olive oil.’ Elisha said, ‘Go round and ask all your neighbours for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few.’” 2 Kings 4:2-3
What if living when life gives us less is a chance to lean into a spiritual community in a way that we have never had to before? In 2 Kings 4:1-7, a widow with a mountain of debt approached the prophet Elisha in desperation, begging for his help. He asked her what she had and she told him nothing, except a jar of olive oil. Elisha then instructed her, “Go round and ask all your neighbours for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side” (2 Kings 4:3-4). Elisha’s instructions to the widow shifted the focus from herself to those around her, and what they had to offer.
Although the widow disclosed her need privately to Elisha, his solution required her to go around to all her neighbours, asking for their help. The fact that Elisha specifically told the widow not to ask just for a few meant she
needed to radically depend on the neighbours to give generously; it was not just a small favour, but a big ask. Some of us may feel ashamed to tell other people our business, let alone ask them for help with our struggles, but God has placed us in community, where our fear should not keep us from reaching out to others and saying, “I need your help.”
After the widow received the jars, she began filling them with oil, until every last jar was filled. Elisha then told her, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left” (2 Kings 4:7). On the other side of the little that the widow had was a miracle, not just in the home of the widow, but in the whole community because they all had a part in this amazing work of God!
In this story, maybe some of us are the neighbours and we are challenged to give generously to help others in need. What if, at the widow’s pleading, we hoarded the empty jar in our home? We would have missed out on being part of the solution to the widow’s crisis. With the help of the neighbours, the widow was able to pay her debts by selling the oil and living on what was left. This tells us that God is not only able to use the little that we think we have to decrease deficit gaps but also lead us towards a path of flourishing.
Imagine what the widow’s life was like in the community after this experience!
Lord God, thank You for the community that You have placed around me. Please give me the boldness and courage to ask for help when I am in need and to give generously to those who ask.
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