I’ve been thinking about acts of faith recently.
This last week, I’ve kept coming across different Bible stories in which God asked people to step out in faith before they got their miracle.
The miracle only came after they were willing to obey.
Like the widow who needed money to pay her debts. Elisha asked her to collect every jar she could find first, and then she started pouring oil. As she started pouring, God made it multiply.
I wonder how she felt as she went around asking her neighbors for all those jars, even though she had nothing to put in them…
Or the story of Elijah asking a widow for bread, and she said there was only enough flour in her house to make one more meal for herself and her son, and then they would die. Elijah asked her to first make him a loaf of bread. As she started baking, God made it multiply.
The most challenging story came to me in the form of a message. (Which you can find here. Look for the download by Steven Furtick called “Audacious Faith”. It’s a good one!) Ben came across this message, and the speaker was just amazing. (So were his pants. We think Ben needs a pair just like them, ASAP.)
He spoke about the story in which three kings came to Elisha because they had run out of water for their army and all of their animals, and they were desperate.The message God gave them through Elisha was this:
“God’s word: Dig ditches all over this valley. Here’s what will happen—you won’t hear the wind, you won’t see the rain, but this valley is going to fill up with water and your army and your animals will drink their fill. This is easy for God to do; he will also hand over Moab to you. You will ravage the country: Knock out its fortifications, level the key villages, clear-cut the orchards, clog the springs, and litter the cultivated fields with stones.” (2 Kings 3:16-19)
They had to dig the ditches first, and then God filled them up with water.
photo © 2004 la vaca vegetariana , Flickr
In the morning—it was at the hour of morning sacrifice—the water had arrived, water pouring in from the west, from Edom, a flash flood filling the valley with water. (2 Kings 3:20)
God seems to like producing something out of nothing – after He sees His people taking that step of faith. I think we please Him when we show Him we are ready and waiting.
How am I getting ready and waiting today? What is He asking me to do in order to prepare for His provision?
Where’s my flour, or my oil? Where is my shovel?
I need to work with what I’ve got, because it doesn’t matter how small it may be – with God, it is always just enough.
Ordinary Days 