INTRODUCTION...

Happy Mother's Day! Mom’s thanks for all you do to make our world a better place. Your care and your love are felt and appreciated and we love you. If you haven’t told your mom you love her…don’t miss the opportunity, say it out loud, say it through written words, but say it.

EXHAUSTING REALITY: Mom’s (and parenting in general) have an exhausting reality. And with the business that comes from working, teaching, managing a household, raising children, relating to spouse’s and extended family, striving to be a disciple who is actively loving others who are far from Jesus…it adds up and it takes its toll.

RUNNING ON FUMES: We can find ourselves at the end of our ropes sometimes, too many things to accomplish, so much to be responsible for and yet feeling like “I’ve got nothin left”. I’ve been there. We have all been there. Maybe you got up this morning and felt these very things! || I want to encourage you this morning by telling you of a miraculous account of a woman who was in the same place. She was in a desperate situation, with no visible path forward. She had come to the end of her rope and the future looked devastating. But God, in his power and in his love used this moment to reveal how much he loved her and showed her that even at the end of her rope, when she had very little left in the tank, He could use that and multiply it and meet her needs, take care of her. || Maybe that is what you need today, a reminder that God is able to use you, and the little you have in the tank, for his good purposes in your life and for his glory. And that is my key thought for today…

KEY THOUGHT...

“Whatever you have is enough for God to use for his good purpose”

THE TEXT... 2 Kings 4:1-7


TWO MAIN CHARACTERS...
1) A WIDOW of one of the servants of the Prophets (probably Obadiah)
2)ELISHA, the Prophet

WHO WAS ELISHA?
-- Elisha, [whose name means "God is salvation,”] was the successor of Elijah in the office of the prophet in Israel(1 Kings 19:16, 19–21; 2 Kings 5:8). He was called to follow Elijah in 1 Kings 19:19, and he spent the next several years as the prophet’s protégé, until Elijah was taken into heaven [Elisha saw Elijah being taken up to heaven by chariots]. At that time, Elisha began his ministry, which lasted about 60 years, spanning the reigns of kings Jehoram, Jehu, Jehoahaz, and Joash. One memorable moment happened when the enemy outnumbered them and Elisha’s servant was scared, Elisha prayed his servant would see the armies of the Lord surrounding them and God opened the servants eyes to be able to see flaming chariots and horses and angel warriors (2 Kings 6:16-17)]

READ 2 KINGS 4:1-7…

1. THE WIDOW WAS IN NEED… no way out, desperate…
2 KINGS 4:1 || she lost her husband and with it her status and place in society, she had no money, no resources (as wife of Obadiah some think that when he hid the 100 prophets from Jezebel, who was trying to kill them all, he may have spent all of their resources on feeding them and taking care of them) || she was left with enough debt that creditors were now knocking on her door, and the only solution was that her boys were going to be sold into slavery to pay off the debts || this was a desperate woman…lost her husband, now possibly her boys || she needed an intervention…and she cried out to God through Elisha his prophet…

2. THE WIDOW HAD ONE SMALL JAR… expensive but little…
2 KINGS 4:2 || When asked what she had to pay off the debt, she said she had nothing but did remember she had a very small amount of oil || this was the last bit of oil she had, enough for one more anointing || maybe she was saving it for her burial || but in her mind it wasn’t enough to even be considered a resource…but it was just what God wanted to use to meet her needs

3. THE WIDOW WAS TOLD TO COLLECT ‘EMPTY JARS’… a bunch, not a few…
2 KINGS 4:3 || this was a faith move, she only had part of the answer from Elisha, he didn’t give her the full picture || empty jars was the key, full jars would have been useless, they had to be empty to be useful || Elisha told her to collect a bunch, “do not get just a few” || her provision would equal her obedient collection

4. THE WIDOW’S OIL WAS MIRACULOUSLY MULTIPLIED… God making a lot out of a little…
2 KINGS 4:4-6 || She did as Elisha told her || went into her room with her sons and started pouring the small amount of oil she had into all of the containers they had collected…what a moment of faith…pouring, filling, shaking the original container “yep, still some in there…bring me another one!” || every empty vessel was filled until there were no more empties || I don’t know how many she collected, but lets just say 25…and there was exactly the amount to fill 25…I think if she had collected 100 there would have been enough oil supplied to fill that amount too! || “then the oil stopped”…kind of a sad moment

5. THE WIDOW’S ABUNDANCE MET HER NEEDS… paid her debt and provided for future…
2 KINGS 4:7 || Elisha gave her the rest of the instructions to go and sell all of the full containers of oil, pay your debts then live on the rest || God took the little that she had and made a lot of it! He saved her, her boys, paid her debts and provided money for the rest of her life! What a great and loving and merciful God. What a sacrificial, faith-filled and obedient widow!

APPLICATION…NOT JUST FOR MOM’S!

1. ALL OF US ARE NEEDY
- Not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually
- Life takes a toll on all of us. Financial trouble. Relational trouble. Emotional trouble.


2. ALL OF US HAVE A LITTLE SOMETHING GOD CAN USE
- Two things… 1) God has given you gifts, talents, to be used for his glory, some are big and some are small and he uses them all! 2) He has given us the Holy Spirit.
- As followers of Jesus, one of the ‘gifts’ we have been given is the Holy Spirit. Now this is no “little” gift. But at times we can feel like we have nothing, we are at the end of our rope, we have no energy, or will power, or any power to face what is in front of us
- But God in his mercy and grace has given to us the gift of the Holy Spirit and it is the power and presence of the Holy Spirit that enables us to face all that we are given.
- When our power is done, our strength is gone…it is in those very moments that the Spirit of God is at work in and through us using the smallest of resources we have left to accomplish great and miraculous things.

2 Cor 12:7b-10
“Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself. 8 Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it would leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

3. ALL OF US NEED AN ATTITUDE OF ‘EMPTINESS’
-- IT REQUIRES SACRIFICE:
The widow had a small amount of oil…it required sacrifice, giving of all of it, even the smallest amount, so that God could take the little and to make it much
-- IT REQUIRES BELIEVING AND STEPPING OUT IN FAITH:
When the widow was told to go get more ‘vessels’ she was being invited into the process of her provision. She had to step out in faith to go do what she was being asked to do, even thought it might not have made sense to her at the moment. In fact Elisha didn’t give her the full picture of what God was going to do, so she was required to step out in obedience, in faith, to do what she was asked to do.
-- IT REQUIRES AN “ATTITUDE OF EMPTINESS”:
- She was told to get EMPTY Jars…Which makes sense, because a full vessel is useless, it needs to be empty so that it can be FILLED UP…I think this speaks to our own attitudes, our own surrendering, our own faithful obedience…to have an “EMPTY” attitude, one that recognizes that in our own strength we will fall short…we need to be empty to be filled…
Empty = willing to submit (sacrifice) || Empty = willing to believe by faith || Empty = willing to obey even when we don’t understand
When we have an ‘attitude of emptiness’ serving God may look a little differently than you thought it would:

“OTHERS MAY . . . YOU CANNOT" by G. D. Watson (1845-1924)
"If God has called you to really be like Jesus, He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility and put upon you such demands of obedience that you will not be able to follow other people or measure yourself by other Christians. In many ways, He will seem to let other people do things which He will not let you do. Others may boast of themselves, or their work, or their successes, or their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing. If you begin it, He will lead you into some deep humiliation that will make you despise yourself and all your good works. Others may be allowed to succeed in making money or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor because He wants you to have something far better than gold—namely, a helpless dependence upon Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an "unseen treasury.” He may let others be great but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit for it, but He will make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing. Then to make your work all the more precious, He may let others get credit for the work which you have done, and thus make your reward ten times greater when Jesus comes! The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings, or for wasting your time, which other Christians never feel distressed over. So make up your mind that God is an infinite Sovereign and has the right to do as He pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things that puzzle your reason in His dealing with you, but if you absolutely sell yourself to be His love slave, He will wrap you up in a jealous love, and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle."

4. GOD IS ABLE TO TAKE THE ‘LITTLE’ AND MAKE IT ‘MUCH’…SUPPLYING OUR NEEDS BOTH FOR NOW AND THE FUTURE!
- God did a miracle in this widows life. He took the small amount of oil that she had and through her sacrifice, faith and obedience, turned it into an enormous amount of oil to meet her needs, not only paying off the debt, but giving her the means to support herself for the rest of her life
- God does that in our lives too…his miraculous supply is unending when we live our lives in an ‘empty’ posture
- God pours out his Spirit in our lives, heals us, provides for us, gives us endurance and patience and stamina in the midst of crazy
- God calls us into this relationship with him…and just as he invited the widow into this process he is inviting us to live sacrificial, faith filled, obedient, empty lives so that his strength can be made perfect in our weaknesses
- It doesn’t always look the way we think it is going to look, but in God’s way, in His timing, it works out for our good and His glory

SUBMIT…BELIEVE/HAVE FAITH…OBEY and watch God turn a little into a lot!

RESPOND, REFLECT & COMMUNION

I would like to give you a chance to respond to God…

-- What did God reveal about who he is to you today in our time in God’s word?
-- What did God reveal about what he has done or is doing in our time in God’s word?
-- What did you learn about who you are as we looked at these stories today?
-- What did you learn about what you are supposed to do?

—> Let's take a minute to thank Him, respond to Him, confess our sins to Him, examine our hearts before we take communion...

—> WHAT IS JESUS SAYING TO YOU TODAY?
—> WHAT IS JESUS ASKING YOU TO DO?