Tragedy Strikes the Widow of Zarephath (I Kings 17:17-24)
Last week we told the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. In the story, the widow experienced a miracle of provision that provided an endless supply of flour and oil during a period of drought and no rain. Her miracle came through her faith and obedience to the prophet Elijah’s word.
During this time of drought, the widow, her son, and Elijah had plenty of bread to keep them alive until rain would come upon the land. But, something tragic happened. The widow’s son became ill and died. The widow, a non-Jew, assumed that it was a punishment for her sins and blamed Elijah and His God. She says to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, O man of God? Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to kill my son?”
How many times has God been good to us and then something goes wrong and we instantly become guilty and think He’s reminding us of our sins? Life happens, both good and bad. However, knowing that we have a loving God who loves us so much, we have to remind ourselves that He will work things out for our good. We may not understand it at the time. We just need to pray, find the scriptures that address the issue and believe that He will take care of us.
God took care of Elijah by providing him safety in a land outside of Israel, a place to stay at the widow’s house, and a never-ending food supply for the household. Even though Elijah was a man of God, he experienced the tragedy as well. He told the widow to give him her son and he took him to the upper room where he lodged. He laid the boy on his bed and cried out to God and said, “O Lord my God, have You also brought tragedy on the widow with whom I lodge, by killing her son?” Elijah, like the mother, was just as human in his response. He was asking God if He brought this tragedy. Then Elijah did something strange. He stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried out to God and said, “O Lord my God, I pray, let this child’s soul come back to him.” God heard him and answered his prayer. The soul of the child came back to him and he was alive once again.
Elijah brings the boy down from his room and gives him to his mother and says, “See, your son lives!” Then the mother responds, “Now I know you are a man of God and the Word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth.” We go through trials and challenges in life, and this story reminds us of God’s faithfulness. His Word, which we have in the Bible, is the truth. When you are faced with a personal challenge or tragedy, remember that God loves you and His promises in the Word are for you. As we face our challenges, go through the emotional ups and downs, we can hold onto the promise in Romans 8:28 which says, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. ( John 17:17; Romans 8:28; John 3:16)
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Personal Development Tip of the week:
Let’s talk about leadership. Do you consider yourself a leader? If you answered no I would like you to reconsider your answer because I do believe you are a leader.
Well first let’s talk about what leadership is. I believe at its core, leadership is influence.
You might be thinking, well Dayne, I don’t influence anyone right now so how can I be a leader? Do you believe that’s actually true? Right now in your personal life, YOU are leading YOURSELF! This is one of the most important parts of leadership, Self Leadership.
Before we can step into any form of leadership where we impact the thoughts, feelings, and decisions of others we have to remember we must lead ourselves. We have to lead ourselves to decide what we are going to focus on with our lives, how we want to live our lives, and who we are going to surround ourselves with. Self-leadership is the foundation of all leadership I believe because if we can influence ourselves to make good choices that are good for us, good for others, and serve God it’s put’s us in a position to help others at the highest level.
Now knowing that you have to lead yourself also consider this, you are influencing people every day just based on you being around people in your life. You are leading your family, your friends you hang out with, your significant other. Even if you don’t feel like you are you have to remember that everyone you spend time with becomes influenced in some way by you just by being around them.
Knowing this, you can start asking yourself questions like, “What type of role model do I want to be for the people I spend time with in my life?”
I want you to think about this question today because knowing that you influence the people you spend time with doesn’t mean you are influencing them in a positive way. We all have people who come into our lives at some point who are not a good influence for us and we sometimes have to make tough decisions to stop being around these types of people.
We sometimes are not good influences either for others so that’s why we have to focus on our own self-leadership first so we impact our own lives in a positive direction to then influence others for the same.
Lastly remember, leadership isn’t just defined based on your title at work. Leadership happens across all forms of relationships and communication so I challenge you today to think about your life and how you want to lead yourself right now so that you can continue to impact yourself in a positive way that will impact the others around you.
Question for you? What type of leader do you want to be for the people in your life right now?
Prayer for the week:
Father God, thank you for this brand new week you have given me. Bless me, protect me, and guide me this week to make good decisions and continue to walk in your presence. Help me this week grow in my personal and spiritual development so that I can be blessed to be a blessing to the people in my life. Thank you for making me on purpose with a purpose, gifted, qualified, and anointed to do great things while I’m here and I claim your great purpose for my life right now in Jesus name Amen.
PS. If you would like to support us consider checking out www.litwithprayer.com and picking up our devotional prayer journal to our new pieces of Christian-based Jewelry.
Do you know Jesus?
If you have never asked Jesus to be the leader of your life and forgive you of all your sins, this is the right time to act. Pray this simple prayer and believe it in your heart: “Dear God, Your Word says that You loved me so much that You sent Your Son Jesus to die on the cross for me. I want to be saved and have all my sins forgiven, past, present, and future. Forgive me now as I receive Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. You promised me salvation and an abundant life. I believe and receive Your free gift. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and help me grow stronger in You each day, in Jesus name I pray, Amen.” (John 3:16)
Tragedy Strikes the Widow of Zarephath