It is wonderful to be satisfied. But some of our readers are always hungry, some are always sick, and most of us are always wanting what we do not have. But here is the story of a mother who had enough, even when those around her became thinner and hungrier every day.
The country where this mother lived had had no rain for three years. The crops dried up in the fields and vegetable gardens, cows gave no milk for children and there was no meat for dinner. Nobody had enough food, and there were not many smiles.
This poor, thin mother had one little boy and one big barrel that had only a tiny handful of flour left in the bottom. She also had one bottle with a tiny bit of oil left in it. Sadly, all she could do was to go find two sticks to build a little fire and cook a little pancake for the two of them. After that, their food would be gone and they would starve to death. There was no other hope.
What a sad situation it was for this mother and her little son. They did not have enough. Maybe you have a lot more than she had, but you are going to lose it ALL when you die. What will you have then? Enough? If you have Jesus as your Savior, you have enough. Nothing, not even death, can take you away from the Savior who loves you.
God knew all about this poor mother. As she was finding sticks to build the fire, she heard Elijah at the city gate calling to her. Now Elijah was God’s messenger to His people Israel. He asked her for a little drink of water. She turned to get it for the traveler, but then he also asked her for a little piece of bread.
Her answer is surprising because she lived in a country where God was not known, but she said, “As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake.” Her answer was true. And then she truthfully told him about that little bit of flour and oil and her plan for her and her son to eat it and die.
It is wonderful to tell God the truth. Perhaps it would take longer for you to list everything that you have, but you could end up the same way - use it all and then die.
“Make me . . . a little cake first,” said Elijah, “and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.”
If you were that mother, would you gasp at such an impossibility? There wasn’t enough flour and oil to make a little cake for him to eat and then another one for her and her son to eat. Would you turn away and not listen anymore?
But Elijah’s message came from God. God’s message to you may be just what you don’t want to hear - that you are a hopeless sinner and can do nothing to earn heaven for yourself. Keep on listening! God’s Word is true, from cover to cover!
“Fear not,” said Elijah. And this was God’s promise: “The barrel of meal shall not [be used up], neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord [sends] rain upon the earth.” Do you understand that promise? There would always be some flour in the barrel and some oil in the bottle as long as she needed it. God didn’t promise a full barrel or a full bottle. Just enough. Enough for each day as it came. If she did not use it all each day, it did not pile up.
You don’t need to ask if God’s promise came true. His promises always come true. “The barrel of meal [was not used up], neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord.”
Each of us who is living right now can say that we have as much of our blessed Lord Jesus as we want, and our lives show how much we want. Our stomachs may have too much or too little, but that is not where our happiness lies. It is the Lord Jesus Himself who is enough for each day and gives us real happiness.
You may wonder why the Bible does not tell us that she shared this food with her neighbors who were starving too. Perhaps they were not willing to believe in the living God and His promises. I cannot share my salvation with others, but I can tell them to come to Jesus for their own salvation. Will you come and believe? He has promised, “Him that [comes] to Me I will in [no way] cast out” (John 6:3737All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. (John 6:37)). “These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life [salvation] through His name” (John 20:3131But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. (John 20:31)).
We will tell you more of this mother and her son in the next story.