1 Kings 17:8-16 (Click to read)
It's always a good idea to think about what to bring on a trip, especially if this would be the first time you were going to a particular place. For instance, I'm going on a trip with our youth group in a week or so. We're going to Kauai, a neighbor island I've been to many times, but I've never stayed on the campgrounds we'll be at. I have to think about so many things; do they have electricity, what about clean water, can I get a cell phone signal, does it get cold, what about mosquitoes? All valid questions, but not really something we think about on a daily basis.
In order to know the answers about these questions, and the more that I have, I had to ask someone who knew. As I sat there with a notepad and a pen, writing down the items I'll need on this trip, I realized that when we go on journeys into the unknown, it helps to have someone who knows what to expect. I have to admit it would be better to have someone just provide me with everything I need, but to have someone knowledgeable about what I'll need and share the information with me is the next best thing.
Come to think of it, by having someone share the information with me I'll be better prepared for things that may happen on the trip. I know, for example, that the cabins we'll be staying in don't have potable water. In order to have water to drink and cook in we'll have to gather water from an outside faucet hundreds of feet away that has potable water and store it somehow. Imagine if I went on this trip not knowing that piece of information, I would have either gotten sick drinking non-potable water or made a few trips up and down the mountain to remedy the situation.
In today's passage Elijah is on his own journey, one he's making on God's behalf. God tells Elijah that his needs will be taken care of, just follow his directions. We read that Elijah's needs are taken care of, and so are the needs of the person taking care of him - even in the midst of a famine and drought. One of the things I like about the earlier stories told in the bible is how we're shown the pioneering adventures of the forefathers of Judaism, and to an extent Christianity. It's in the history of these people we are able to see for ourselves what provisions we'll need for our own journeys.
Because of the stories preserved in the bible I know I have a God I can trust in to let me know what things I'll be needing for my journey towards understanding and sharing God's love better. Then, as I experience what these things are for myself I am better prepared to share that information with others. We can only hope the ripple continues from there.
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