Don’t Ask For Just a Few

“The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha,

“Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord.

 But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.”

Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”

“Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”

 Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars.

Don’t ask for just a few.  

Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons.

Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”

 She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons.

They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring.  

When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”

But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.

She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts.

You and your sons can live on what is left.”

II Kings 4:1-7

 

Don’t ask for just a few.

Sounds like pretty simple, even trivial, advice the Man of God gave the widow woman.

At the point that he made that comment she had no way of knowing what was in store for her.

She only had his command – and it made little or no sense to her.

She had to believe that the God for whom the Prophet spoke was indeed

Jehovah Jireh, the “God who provides”.

Reinhard Bonnke tells of asking God for a nation.

God responded to him that his vision was not big enough.

From that conversation with God, he cried out for the entire continent of Africa.

Don’t ask for just a few.

That was the Prophet Elisha’s words to the widow.

It was God’s word to Reinhard Bonnke.

It is His word to each of us.

God is infinitely bigger and more powerful than our prayers often recognize Him to be!

I am not saying we shouldn’t believe God for little things.

I am saying we should believe God for greater than what we often reduce our petitions to.

In this season we find ourselves in, stretch your faith as you pray.

 I understand we all are at different places in our walk with God.

But that is a function of where we are and not who He is!

Pray for the Nations for your inheritance.

It is not too big a prayer for God to answer!

“Oh, but I’m not ready for that!”

In your own strength, ability and power you never will be.

After all, the widow (from her own resources) did not possess

enough to receive God’s blessings either.

Don’t ask for just a few!