OCTOBER 14, 2022
ON THE PORCH
TATTERED & TORN
Tattered, Torn, Limp, Worn, Beaten down, Broken, Burdened, Tired, Bruised, Scarred, Hurt, Heavy-hearted, Weary, Weathered, Shriveled, Burned Out, Depleted, Exhausted, Consumed, Spent…
A few days ago, a friend pulled out her Bible, and she had a pocket in the front with “her treasures in it.” This ten-dollar bill fell out. She found it one day laying on the ground. It would be perfectly legal for her to trade it in for a newer, crisper, better one, but she chooses to keep it in her Bible to remind her to pray when she is tired and torn.
**So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.”
“As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.” I Kings 17:10-12
Ever felt like giving up? Throwing in the towel? Saying “To heck with it?”
In this fast-paced society we live in, it is so easy to run out of gas and feel like we are only operating on fumes. Life grabs and yanks and takes some more. Storm clouds rain down their fury in our lives and “fighting the good fight” gets tougher and tougher.
That is exactly where this widow Zarephath was. She had given up and was just done. Nothing was left in her tank, mentally or physically and she was ready to die. She was literally gathering sticks to make a fire to cook her and her son’s last meal. She had NOTHING left. Empty. Zip. Zilch. Nada.
Enter Elijah.
**Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” 1 Kings 17:13-14
Two things stood out to me in this passage of Scripture. The first was that Elijah told the widow to go ahead and fix her last meal, but to put his needs before her or her son’s. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME??” This prophet, this stranger, shows up and wants the only thing she had left.
**She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:13-16
The second thing that caught my attention in these verses was that she followed Elijah’s instructions. As a mom, I would have struggled taking the last piece of bread we had from my child’s mouth and giving it to a stranger.
I wonder what she was thinking as she baked their last meal, just to give it away. Was she just hoping to have enough for each of them to get a few bites? Or was she praising God while she baked, trusting God to take care of her tiny little family?
As the passage said, her supply did not run dry but fed the three of them for months to come. Because she chose to sacrifice the only thing she had left, no matter how small it was, God rewarded her obedience.
He will also honor what we offer up to Him today. Whether we feel like we have a full tank or are running on empty, God has a plan for us. He used a broken-down widow that was literally throwing in the towel to minister to His prophet.
Just as He chose her, God wants to use every one of us, no matter how empty we feel. We are each created with a purpose that only we can fulfill. God will supply our needs and reward our obedience if we are willing…especially when our well is dry and our tank is running on E. He has a way of restoring our souls and our bodies when we step out on faith and offer Him what we have left, no matter how tiny it may seem.
The definition of unfit currency, from the Federal Reserve System’s Cash Product Office, is a “note that is not suitable for further circulation because of its physical condition.” — www.stlouisfed.org
When a bill or currency from the United States treasury like the one shown above doesn’t meet their expectations, they take it out of circulation. It doesn’t matter that it still has life left in it. Its trip is over because it is tattered and torn. It is retired and destroyed.
But that is not the way of God. If you are living and breathing, God is not done with you yet. He isn’t through with you until He calls you home.
If you ever feel old and worn out or worthless, when life is dreary and the storms rage or you feel like giving up, remember the widow. Hold your weary heart and your empty hands up to the Father as an offering, and He will fill them.
LORD, thank You for the widow choosing to obey instead of sending Elijah on his way to fend for himself. If she had, she probably would have died that day, along with her son. We surely wouldn’t be reading about her for thousands of years to come. Thank You for the reminder this scripture holds that You reward obedience, especially when we are tired and torn and have nothing left to give. You have shown time and time again that You will replenish and refill us when the world takes and takes and takes some more. When we feel like we cannot go any further, we fall to our knees and cry out for help. You hold our hand, help us stand, and walk beside us as we fall to our knees again. Rinse, lather, repeat. We continue this process until we are strong enough to walk again. Thank You for not giving up on us, LORD. Give us the strength to carry on, even when things seem hopeless, and praise Your name until You call us home. And when others struggle, remind us to hold out our hand to share Your love in their time of need. In Jesus’ Precious Name, Amen.
**I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. Psalm 146:2
WEARY TRAVELER
ON THE PORCH 