God provides enough!

1 Kings 17:8-16

Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you." So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink." As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand." But she said, "As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die." Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the LORD sends rain on the earth. "She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.

Lord,
you provide
enough.

We only see a handful,
scarcely any at all,
and we hoard it for ourselves
convinced there is not enough,
not enough to share,
barely enough to eat and die.

I hear it all too often.
We are such a small church.
We have no children.
We can't share or reach out.
We barely have enough to pay the utilities,
to take care of our own needs.
Then we'll die.

And yet, what congregational leaders forget
is that you are a God who provides.
When the widow did as Elijah asked,
sharing her food with him,
God provided enough!
And she was beyond the boundaries of Israel.

If only congregations would take the same risk,
focused not on their own needs or fears
but rather sharing the Good News of God's love,
God's compassion, God's salvation,
with those who need it
beyond the boundaries of their walls,
Lord, you will provide enough!

Help us live into your enough
and share it with those who need it!
Amen.