Sometimes God asks big things of us. Suppose God asked you to give the little that you have and you do give it. That is what the widow of Zarephath did. Fr. Mike tells the story of this wonderful lady who lived in the north (present day Lebanon) at the time of the prophet Elijah. As you may remember, Elijah was the only prophet of Yahweh. Most of the country worshipped the god called Baal. Elijah had left his own country and so was lonely and without provisions. He met this widow and asked her for water and flour cakes. In great generosity she gave him all she had for herself and her only son. Lo and behold! God blessed her abundantly with food for the rest of her life. Her only son dies and guess what happens? Fr. Mike compares this story to the ones in the New Testament about the widow of Naim and the story of Lazarus. He then talks about how this story affects us today. How do we care for widows and widowers today? What can we do to help them? What is the reality of our nursing homes? Is there a limit to our generosity? Fr. Mike also spends some time talking about how God loves all people and the ramifications of that in our modern world.
God’s Women – The Widow of Zarephath
