The directions Elijah received next were likely clear and not so clear. “Go live in a village called Zarephath” which happens to be way up north near Sidon. Pretty straightforward, yes, but wrought with questions. Forget that it was a long walk from where he was and that it happened to be in another country which just happened to be home to Ahab’s queen, Jezebel. Why would God send him to a hotbed of Baal worship while he was making a rather drastic point that Baal was no fertility god at all (note: drought in the land)? And why would he send him to a widow, of all people, eking out an existence in the middle of the drought? These things and more were probably swirling around in Elijah’s head as he trekked north. “This is crazy.”
Meanwhile in Zarephath, a widow has a few things to ponder as well. Slowly losing a battle for survival and alone with her young son, her fragile life is interrupted by a strange dream. A voice like no other told her he was the Lord God of Israel and that his servant would be coming to her soon. She was to put him up in her home and care for him. Care for him? Another mouth to feed when her food supplies were nearly exhausted. This is insane!
Two lives were about to converge in this small village from two very different sets of circumstances. Both had this in common, however, they both were contemplating the instructions of a God, who just didn’t make sense. How often is it the case that what we expect God to do or say is not what God does or says? We tend to think that we can predict God’s behavior and respond to things that go on around us only to find that we missed it completely. We, who are finite, who see only a moment shouldn’t be so surprised to learn that our infinite God operates on a whole different level.
And as it turned out, there in the land of Baal worship, things weren’t so crazy after all, and the impossible became very possible indeed. Elijah and the unnamed widow experienced a God who took away fears and concerns by providing exactly what was needed for as long as it was needed. An endless supply of oil and flour was there for their partaking, and they were reminded of this provision every time they sat down to eat. And maybe because even this was becoming too commonplace, God did the impossible, again. Sometime during what must have been a stay of over a year (or even two) for Elijah, God dramatically revealed himself by restoring the widow’s son’s life to her. Maybe that was exactly what they both needed to face what was next.
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