God Provides, So Be Generous – November 11, 2024

Read: 1 Kings 17:8-16

She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah.
1 Kings 17:15,16

God Provides, So Be Generous

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Has there ever been a time in your life when you didn’t have enough food? When the shelves in your house were bare, and your family didn’t have money to buy anything? Has that ever happened to you? For most of us, we always have enough. We have never had to ask the question, “What are we going to eat today?”

But that was a question in Elijah’s day. Elijah lived in Israel about 2,800 years ago. At that time, the Israelites, led by the wicked King Ahab, were worshiping false gods. So, God sent a drought to show them who the true God was.

Since there was no food in the land, God provided for Elijah in another way. He sent him to a town called Zarephath, “I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.”

There was one problem: this widow didn’t have any food either, just a little flour and oil. It must have been hard for that widow to be generous with Elijah and share her food. But she had faith in God to provide, so “She went away and did as Elijah had told her,” And “The jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry.”

When you hear a story like this, it makes you think, “Wouldn’t it be cool if our jar of flour never ran out?” But if you think about it, it doesn’t! There’s always more food to fill our cupboards, and our refrigerators are full. Why? God provides. Sometimes, he uses miracles. But usually, he uses parents. You know that your parents will provide you with what you need.

The widow knew she had a Father in heaven who would provide for her so she could be generous with Elijah. This can be our attitude, too! We know we have a loving Father because he gave us his only Son, Jesus, to forgive our sins and make us his own.

When we see God’s love for us in Jesus, it changes everything. If God was willing to do the biggest thing for you, do you think he’ll do the small things, too? Of course! When we know those truths, it sets us free from worrying about ourselves, so we can use the gifts that God gives us to be generous with others.

Closing Prayer:

Dear Father, lead us to trust in you to provide for all our needs in this life. In Jesus name, Amen.

The questions below are to help families discuss this devotion. The questions are divided by age group as suggestions, but anyone could reflect on any of the questions as they desire.

Questions for Younger Children

• Who provides everything we have (food, clothes, house, etc.)?
• Why does God give us all these things?

Questions for Elementary Age Children

• Why does God want us to give offerings to him? Is that true even for children?
• Come up with some ways that you can be generous with the gifts that God has given you.

Questions for Middle School and Above

• Agree/Disagree: God is going to provide for me anyway, so it doesn’t matter where and how I spend my money.
• Why do you think Jesus taught us to pray, “Give us today our DAILY bread?”