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All I Have Is a Little Oil

The widow in the story from 2 Kings 4 cried out to the prophet, Elisha, in  desperation. Her husband died, leaving her and her sons with a large debt and no means to pay for it.

The creditors were threatening to take her two sons as slaves to pay the debt. this was a family that loved the Lord and had served him, but they found themselves in a dire situation with no answers. 

Bad things happen to good people, and serving the Lord doesn't make us immune to serious problems.

Elisha asked the widow what she had left, and she replied, "Nothing except a jar of oil."

Oil, in biblical times, was a precious commodity, but she had so little.

Elisha commanded the widow to collect vessels from her neighbors and to start filling them with oil. This was a strange request, but the widow was obedient and stepped out in faith.

As she poured the oil, it miraculously increased. She filled all the vessels until there were no more. She had enough oil to pay her debts and enough for her and her sons to live from.

The widow needed a miracle and she thought that the prophet, Elisha, had provided it. The truth was that she already had the miracle in her possession. The miracle happened when she willingly surrendered what little she had.

That is when God multiplied it.

I know that there are times when you feel completely depleted. As a woman, a wife, a mother, and a working professional, I wear many hats and I have had to juggle many balls in the air. It is hard to give everything to everyone, and I often feel like there is nothing left for myself.

This can bring us to a desert place where we feel like we have become empty vessels—both physically and spiritually. Like the widow in the story, we need to take our minds off of our own problems and give freely of what we have. God will honor that, and he will multiply it.

If the widow had an unlimited supply of vessels, the  oil would have continued to flow indefinitely.

Even if you feel desperate or feel like there is no hope, just keep pouring—even with what little you have.

This is when the miracle happens—when we surrender all!

Going to the Well Journal Prompt

Sometimes, like the widow, we find ourselves focusing on what we don't have rather than focusing on all the blessings that we do have. Write down ten things that you are grateful for in your life right now. They can be big things; they can be small things. Allow this shift from worry to gratitude fill your vessel up with fresh, life-giving oil today.

Drinking from the Living Water

Sweet Spirit of fresh, life-giving oil, I feel like an empty vessel, and I am desperate to be filled up again. Please show me through your infinite wisdom and discernment what I need to do so that I can overflow with joy and gratitude. I offer my life to you—even in this state of emptiness and lack. I ask you to do what you want with it. I am ready to be filled up and poured out and refilled again. I want my life to be a pure reflection of your love. I don't have much, but all I have is yours, God. I am sorry for the times when I only saw the negatives in my life and forgot to give you praise for all the blessings and goodness you have bestowed upon me. Change my perspective, change my heart, and fill me with your spirit so that I can pour it into the world. In Your name I pray.

Amen.