The economic turmoil of the last couple of years has left virtually no person untouched. Women and men have lost their jobs and their homes; families have depleted their savings; poverty has affected an ever-increasing number of lives. Even those not directly harmed by this economic crisis are facing cutbacks and cost-cutting measures. We're all learning that material wealth and prosperity are not things that we can always count on.
This week's passages, therefore, offer an interesting perspective on what it really means to be well-off. We are urged by these texts to cultivate an attitude of abundance, remembering that God's ideas about prosperity may be quite different from our own.
In the reading from First Kings, we hear the story of the widow of Zarephath. The prophet Elijah enters this woman's town, having been told by God that the widow would feed him. But when Elijah approaches her, she is understandably confused:
"As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die." (1 Kings 17:12)
Like many widows of her time, this woman had virtually nothing -- indeed, she seems resigned to a terrible fate for herself and her child, and can't imagine how Elijah could have asked her for something to eat.
But Elijah explains, "Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth." (1 Kings 17:13-14)
And indeed, as the story goes, Elijah was right: "She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah." (1 Kings 17:15-16)
Many will recognize the similarities between this story and the stories found in the Gospels of the ways in which loaves and fishes were multiplied to provide food for thousands. In both, the aid of God multiplied resources far beyond what anyone had believed possible.
In Mark, we hear the story of another widow: this time, a woman who deposits two small coins into the treasury at the temple. Though her offering couldn't have looked like much to outside observers, Jesus reminds his disciples that "this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on" (Mark 12:43-44).
Most of us are not in a position to give away all we have to the church or our neighbors. And there is no doubt that countless people -- both in our own country and around the world -- are struggling to even get to the next day, as was the widow of Zaraphath.
But what this week's passages remind us is that even in the midst of economic strife, we can rethink our ideas about prosperity and abundance. The old cliche is true: every little bit helps. We may not be able to give our next-door neighbor a new job, but we can invite him over for dinner. We might not be able to donate our income to our church, but we can volunteer to teach Sunday school or greet newcomers.
Even when things are hard -- and it's no denying that this is a challenging time -- God calls us to think about how we can cultivate an attitude of abundance that will be a blessing to our families and neighbors. Psalm 146 tells us that "the Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow" (Psalm 146:9). God has not forgotten about us -- and God has called us to share our prosperity, whether our possessions, our time, or our talents, with those in need.
Picture credit here.
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