The daily miracle of MOP life
THERE IS this beautiful stor y, perfect for Lent, the story of Elijah and the widow in the Old Testament.
No rain had fallen on the land. The Lord said to Elijah, “I have designated her to provide for you.”
He went to the city. A widow was gathering sticks at the entrance to the city.
Elijah called out to her, “Please bring me a small cup full of water to drink.”
She left to get it, and he called out after her, “Please bring along a bit of bread.”
She answered, “I have nothing baked. There is only a handful of flour in my jar and a little oil in my jug.”
She said that she had collected a few dried sticks to prepare something for herself and her son to eat and that when they had eaten, they would die, for there is a draught and there was nothing else for them to eat.
Elijah told her: “Do not be afraid. Go and do as you propose, but make me a little cake and bring it to me. Then ,you can prepare for your son and yourself.”
She did what Elijah told her. The jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry until the rains came. (1Kings 17:7-16)
I pray for faith and confidence. We keep giving to the hungry, keep taking water to the thirsty, clothing t o t he naked, the beggars, medicine for the sick. Somehow, God will provide. Give, give, give until the jar of flour is empty and the jar of oil is full.
Live! Live! Live! Trust in Him, have faith. The Lord is with Him. Pour yourself out in service of the Lord.
It is He who feeds 5,000 with five loaves and two fish with seven baskets of scraps left over.
The Brothers experience this every day. We marvel at the five thousand meals we have prepared for people each day in Jamaica alone. We shake our heads and smile as we turn to the heavenly Father, thank Him, bless the food and share it among t he poorest of our people each day with a sense of wander in our hearts and minds.
We are all weak people, sinners, empty j ars, people enduring draught, waiting for rains. We are sinners. We are to reach out for Him, He who sends water on dry land.
During Lent, let us be people who love, who give, who trust, who have faith like the old widow who fed Elijah with her last bit of flour and oil. Let us give until we have empty jars. Then the Lord will pour forth an abundance – that we never expected.
May your Lent be full of trust, faith, and confidence in the Lord.