How many jars can your God fill?

"The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, 'Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.' Elisha replied to her, 'How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?' 'Your servant has nothing there at all,' she said, 'except a little oil.' Elisha said, 'Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.' She left him and afterward shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, 'Bring me another one.' But he replied, 'There is not a jar left.' Then the oil stopped flowing. She went and told the man of God, and he said, 'Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.'" ~2 Kings 4: 1-7

I am ashamed to admit that I have not read the entire Bible. I have read the entire New Testament several times, and I have read some of the more common books of the Old Testament, but many books remain unread in their entirety. One of those books is 2 Kings. Last Saturday, God gave me a hunger for His Word, and I sat and read eight chapters of 2 Kings. I was drinking it in, excited to find out what would happen next!

Then it came: The story of the Widow's Oil! I was deeply touched. I began to think about how many times in scripture the Lord rewards the faithful. Jesus healed a leper, but only after the leper uttered the words, "You can make me clean" (Matthew 8:2). The Roman Centurian asked for his servant's healing, and what was Jesus' reponse? "It will be done JUST AS YOU BELIEVED it would" (8:13).

What about those who walked away from the abudant life Jesus had to offer? The rich young man described in Mark 10 comes to mind. When Jesus asked Him to give up worldly wealth, he couldn't because he lacked the faith to believe his Heavenly Father could provide for him with a far greater treasure. The people of Nazareth rejected Jesus as the Messiah because the God of the Universe could not possbily come to dwell in their ordinary town. In these cases and others, the people lacked FAITH. They simply did not believe Jesus could do what he promised.

Do you believe I can provide you with what you need? Over the past several months, God has been asking me this very question. On Saturday, the question jumped right off the page and into the depths of my heart. The only thing that has ever stood in the way of God's abundant outpouring in my life is my lack of faith. If the widow had believed that God could fill one jar, He probably would have. If she had believed he could fill a few, He would have. Instead, she believed He would fill every jar she could get her hands on. AND HE DID! PRAISE GOD!

How many jars can my God fill? Lord, give me the faith to say, "My God can fill every one!"