There was once a woman whose husband had died and left her with two sons. Times were rough, and she did all she could to care for her sons, but her husband had accumulated debt before he had died, and she was struggling. It was so bad the creditors were fixing to repo somethings. There was a preacher in her town that she decided to go visit and discuss what was going on in her life. So, she went and explained to this preacher all about her debt and the struggles she was facing. The preacher asked her if she had anything left in her home. She told him all she had was some oil. The preacher instructed her to go home, borrow as many jars as she could from her family and neighbors. He then told her to take the containers into their house and start to pour the oil that she had into the empty containers. The widow didn’t ask the preacher questions she just acted on what he told her. So, as she poured, and poured, and poured her little oil filled every empty container that she had borrowed. It was so much oil that she was able to sell it, pay off her debt, and have left overs to live on. You may have guessed by now were talking about the widow that Elisha was able to minister to. We have heard this story many times in Sunday school yet how often do we really pay attention to what this means for us?
Over and over we find where God shows up with not just enough but with overflowing answers to prayer. The five fish and two loaves were more than enough to feed the five thousand, they had left overs. The water that was changed into wine was more than enough to get through the rest of the wedding and it was better than they had before God showed up.
We are so scared to ask God for abundance when over and over He has shown in scripture that He’s a God of more than just enough! He wants to bless us so big that we have leftovers to share.
I think of our marriages, and how He wants our marriage to be more than just mediocre, but its His will that it be overflowing and abundant. He wants our lives to be so filled with the Holy Spirit that we aren’t just Sunday morning church goers but that we are overflowing. The ultimate overflowing that I’m reminded of is Gods promise of salvation. He says he doesn’t just forgive for sinning against him but that he has removed them as far as the east is from the west!
No matter what you are facing have the faith to pray for abundance so that you can have more than enough to show others how to find Jesus!
Psalm 103:10-13 He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his faithful love toward those who fear him. As far as the ease is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him (CSB)