Just a Handful

“I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug.” 1 Kings 17:12

There are some bible stories that, as I read them, I like to imagine myself right there in the middle of them. Today’s story is one of them. It’s the story of the widow who was gathering sticks during a famine so she could bake one last small cake of bread for herself and her son. All she had was a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I cannot even comprehend the fear and heartache she faced knowing this would be her last meal before she and her son would die. Obviously, her life had not been easy; the Bible tells us that she was a widow. She had already experienced great loss, and now it seemed that she was about to lose everything else. No doubt she felt unseen, helpless, and destitute. But even in her misery, she was kind and compassionate.

When Elijah saw her at the city gate, he asked her to give him a little water in a jar to drink. As she was going to get it, he called after her to bring him a piece of bread as well. She told him of her plight, and he said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first, make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up, and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” Dare she hope that his words were true? After all, she was a gentile, and Elijah was an Israelite.

Imagine yourself in her shoes. So desperate for hope, to be seen, to be helped. Could this really happen to her and her son?
Enough food to last throughout the famine? Little did she know that God had already orchestrated her provision before Elijah asked. The Bible tells us that she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and she, Elijah, and her household ate for many days. The bowl of flour was not exhausted, nor did the jar of oil become empty.

God took what she had, what she gave to Elijah, and multiplied it. The Bible didn’t say that she had so much that she had to build a storeroom to hold it all, but that each day throughout the famine she reached her hand into the jar, and there was another handful, then another, and then another. Always, enough for all of them.

In the past, when I’ve faced financial concerns, my mind has spun and spun trying to find the best possible solution. I look at what I have and try to stretch it and manipulate it to last. I work on commission, and that means that there is never a set amount that I’ll be paid, only what is earned and received from the vendors each month. But recently, I’ve been putting God’s Word into practice by first searching the Bible for what God has already told me.

He has said in His Word that He knows what I need before I even ask, and that I don’t need to worry about tomorrow. He is sufficient and that He can do immeasurably more than I could ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within me. He then provided me with a personal experience that allowed me to put His words into practice. He gave me my own ‘handful’ experience.

About a month ago, I was looking over the books and saw that a few lean months were heading my way. There had been such abundance at the beginning of the year, and when I took my concerns to God, He showed me that I needed the abundance for the extra expenses that were present at the beginning of the year. The upcoming months will require less, but I will still have enough. I only need a handful, and He has graciously provided it every single day.

God is asking us to dip our hands into the jar in faith. Reach in and take hold of what He has already provided, not just in our physical lives but our spiritual lives as well. By regularly reading His Word, we will be aware of the vast riches He has promised, such as grace, forgiveness, strength, wisdom, direction, the power to resist temptation, reconciliation, protection, lightened burdens, and so much more. Then we can take hold of them and recognize that they are given to us by Him. They are meant to sustain us during lean times and point us to times of abundance that will come again.

My prayer is that you will keep reaching into the jar and joyfully receive the handful that awaits you.