Serving Those Who Are In CrisisSýnishorn

“Faith in Abundance”

It is one thing to have faith that God will provide for the immediate needs of the person you’re helping. It’s quite another to believe that He will supply an abundance, above and beyond the pressing need. The prophet Elisha did the latter, and God provided. Here’s the story.

A widow came to Elisha, desperate because her late husband’s creditor threatened to take her sons as slaves to pay off the debt. The only thing of value she had was a jar of oil, and that wasn’t worth enough to save her sons.

Elisha told her to borrow empty pots and pans from all of her neighbors; she was not to get just a few. Then she was to begin pouring oil into those vessels from her jar. She and her sons poured until every vessel was full. There was enough oil for the immediate need – paying the debt. But there was more – plenty of oil left for the widow and her sons to live on.

Acting out of faith can be a crucial step in helping another. Elisha presented the plan without hesitating, believing God would give the woman enough oil to solve her problem. But Elisha did not tell the woman to borrow a few pots and pans, just enough to hold the oil required to pay off the debt. No, he had faith that God would provide much more – enough for the woman and her sons to live on. He is a God of abundance!