The Bible is not a book of fairy tales. It’s real-life stories about real-life people who overcame real-life problems…like the widow of Zarephath. She and her son were on the verge of starvation, until God taught her how to sustain their lives through her obedience to Him.
Everybody faces needs. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you live, or what you do. Everyone faces needs. You face needs and I face needs. It is not a sin to face needs.
God Himself faced a need when Satan, through an evil scheme, stole mankind away in the Garden of Eden. God’s need was for mankind to be restored once again to a right relationship with the heavenly Father. That’s why God sent Jesus to the earth…to redeem us back to Himself. John 3:16 tells us that God so loved that He gave.
When you read the Bible, you find numerous stories of how God met needs in a supernatural way. One such story is in 1 Kings 17:1-16. The prophet Elijah had brought a prophetic word over Israel and its wicked king Ahab, saying, “It shall not rain again until I say so.”
Naturally, everyone was upset and no doubt very unhappy with Elijah. So what did God do? He sent Elijah on a temporary leave of absence. The Bible says that God hid him in the wilderness by a little stream.
Each day the birds were commanded to bring him food. And he drank from the stream. The day came, however, when the drought and famine became so great that the birds stopped coming and the stream stopped flowing.
What do you do when all natural means seem to depart? That’s when you listen for the voice of God.
“Go to the city of Zarephath,” God said to Elijah. “There is a woman there who is a widow. I have commanded her to sustain you.” Notice these words: “and Elijah obeyed.”
When he arrived at the woman’s home, she and her son had only enough food for one last dinner. She told Elijah, “We shall eat this and then die.”
The woman and her son were facing their greatest need…but there was another need as well. And that was the need of Elijah’s ministry to continue. Yes, the woman had a need, but so did the prophet. And God showed them a way to partner together so that both she and her son, as well as the prophet, were taken care of.
Elijah said to her, “Give me the first portion…and if you will, every time you are hungry there will be enough food. And it shall be this way until the rains come again and the drought is broken and the crops can be planted.”
What a moment! Would the woman obey the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah or would she hoard the last dinner for herself and her son? The Bible says she obeyed and gave Elijah the first part of the food. She helped to meet a need in his life and ministry. And when she did, God did what only God can do. He stepped in supernaturally. And when the woman and her son were hungry again, they found that by the miracle power of God there was enough food for another meal and another meal and another meal. This went on and on, meal after meal until the rains came and the drought was broken.
This story is not a fairy tale. It’s in the Bible. It’s real life. Today as you face needs, if you will give the first portion unto the Lord, He will sustain you. Acts 10:34 KJV says God is no respecter of persons. That means if He did it for the widow and her son, He will do it for you. Your need might be spiritual. It may be physical or financial. It may be in your business, or on your job, or in your ministry. It may be in your family.
I am facing a need also. It is not a personal need. It is a need for the future of this ministry. As you know, there is a calling on this ministry for television. My need is to obey the Lord and to be on TV every day bringing the saving, healing, delivering power of God to people in need.
I am asking you to “give of the first portion.” I am asking you to partner with me to keep The Hour of Healing on television. In just 10 years, we have received 115,000 healing testimonies! Hundreds of thousands of others have given their hearts to Christ as a result of this healing ministry.
I need your help and I need it now. Please pray about sowing a special seed for television and all this ministry is doing. As you release your seed to God through this ministry, and as you partner with me, I will set my faith in agreement with you just like Elijah set his faith in agreement with the widow.
Right now, I pray that this message has gotten down into your heart, and that you will respond with joy and with faith believing that there is nothing too hard for God…and that as you sow and as you continue to sow, needs will begin to be met by our loving Heavenly Father. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.