Just a small jar of olive oil

It's been a while since a sermon 'hit home', per say. But this week was different. Will you let me process 'outloud'? Bare with me as a share some context...

Our pastor Steve read from 2 Kings 4 about a woman who lost her husband and was worried his creditor would take away her sons. She asked Elisha for help. He asked her what do she had in her house. (seemed like an odd question to me) She only had a small jar of olive oil.

 He gave her the most bizarre suggestion. "Go as your neighbors for empty jars. Not just a few of them. Go in your house with your sons and pour your oil into each jar."

They did as Elisha suggested and the oil flowed. He then told her to go sell the oil and pay of their debts to keep her sons safe.

This is what got me...

Steve shared about a friend of his who ministered with others in Mozambique. A man had been dead for a while when several men of faith laid on top of him and breathed on the body. The man was raised to life. This wasn't hundreds of years ago. This was within the last few years. And it really happened. My stoic pastor broke down in the middle of sharing. Moved too deep to continue talking. Because he truly absorbed the truth and enormity of what God did. He made someone dead breath again.

God did a miracle for the woman in 2 Kings too. But we read over it so quickly. Unable to absorb it. We can't imagine. We don't comprehend. We might even be skeptical. But it clearly states she was in dire need and God provided supernaturally.

We don't understand dire need. Well most of us don't. We live in a culture of self-sufficiency. We honor resiliency. We pride ourselves in being self-sustaining. God is 'just a crutch' for people who are weak and desperate.

The truth is, we all have just a small jar of oil.

That was Steve's message.
We're not helpless good-for-nothing weak souls. No.
But let's not pretend to have it all together.

The very simple truth is we need God.