Bishop Hutterer: The jar that will not empty
“But after a while the wadi dried up because there was no rain in the land. Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there, for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.” As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said, but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.” She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.”
Photo by mohammad alashri on Unsplash
Earlier this year, I met with the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry Arizona (LAMA) policy council and we spent time reflecting on this story from 1 Kings.
It’s a desperate scene with these two characters. Elijah is hiding from King Ahab and he is thirsty because there is a drought. God sends him to Zarephath where God commanded a widow — not just a widow, but a foreigner as well — to feed him.
When he shows up, it’s not clear that she had received the memo from God to feed him. Her response to his request for drink and food gives us an idea of her despair. She was going home with a few sticks to build a fire and use what was left of her food to make a last meal.
During Elijah’s and the widow’s hunger and uncertainty, they both trusted. Rather than be paralyzed by fear, death, and hunger, they trusted God to care for them. And God’s love for them led them to care for and trust each other.
In today’s world, the statistics on women and children in situations of famine are sobering. Human rights organizations note that the effects of natural disaster, including climate change, are felt most acutely by women and children. In Arizona, we understand this as well, where almost 800,000 people face hunger, and of them 270,000 are children. That is 1 out of every 6 children in Arizona.
Many of us live in material abundance and have more than we need, so much that our houses and the waistlines of our pants must grow to accommodate it all. Will we be the unlikely angels who proclaim God’s abundance?
The story of the widow of Zarephath reminds us there is enough for all. There is more than enough.
In the midst of uncertainties, with problems that can seem so huge, the politics can seem confusing. Yet, we trust God to take our actions and our voices and make them more than we might imagine.
At the LAMA policy council, we all agreed that this story isn’t just about the bread that fills our stomachs, but about actions that feed our spirit and allow us to see each other as human. It is a story about the gift of faith, which calls us out of ourselves to see that we are interconnected and woven together by a gracious God.
In our synod, we are blessed with an abundance of ministries that focus on hunger. From the advocacy work of LAMA and Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada (LEAN) to the many food banks and outreach efforts of many of our ministries, we are a synod that works in many ways to end food insecurity. Through your giving to our Growing Generosity Appeal and through congregational mission support, we’ve been able to continue to fund LEAN and LAMA and provide grants towards food issues.
During this Thanksgiving, as we are grateful for the bounties we share, I hope you find time to listen to the ways God calls you, like the widow of Zarephath, like the prophet Elijah, to be both the giver and receiver of bread and faith.
Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath: A Prayer by Ian Webster
Lord, we look into the bowl of our lives
and it seems so empty.
The jar of oil has run out;
We have nothing to give,
Nothing to share,
Nothing with which to feed the hungry,
or heal the wounded.Sometimes we pray as the widow of Zarephath perhaps prayed:
“Oh, no, Lord. Don’t send anyone else.
There’s nothing left to give.”Lord, forgive our complaints about how empty the bowl is,
our failure to delight in what you have put into our lives.
Forgive our attempts to hoard what you have given us;
Because, Lord, your promises are for today,
not for tomorrow.You said we should pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.”
And, while things have sometimes been really tough,
there has always been enough:
Enough food and drink—
often more than enough to share;
Enough joy to give to a neighbour, to a stranger.You have given us healing, friends, fellow travellers;
those who gather (*worship) with us today.
And above all, an abundance of your love,
generously, extravagantly given.
Sometimes you pour your love over us;
Sometimes it comes to us through friends and strangers.Lord, we have so much to give.
Fill our hearts to overflowing
with the generous love of your Spirit.
And in our families, in our neighbourhoods,
in our workplaces,
give us the courage to feed the hungry,
to heal the sick, to restore the broken,
and to allow your Spirit to breathe new life,
new hope and new joy.In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Grateful to be Church Together with you,
The Rev. Deborah K. Hutterer
Bishop
Grand Canyon Synod of the ELCA
