EMPTY JARS
And Elisha said, “Borrow as many empty jars as you can from your friends and neighbors.” 2 Kings 4:3 (NLT)
The word ‘jar’ is a fascinating word – it conjures up images of varying sizes, shapes, antique or modern; it has a list of possibilities for contents which are endless.
Having ‘put up’ for years and years, jars represent the harvest. Jars are a receptacle for hours of home cooked goodness, for summer fun and for memories. Jars hold a treasure.
Elisha was responding to a request of a widow who’s husband served him, but the husband was now dead, leaving the woman a poor widow with two sons to care for. She was in need, and fast.
This widow approached Elisha, her husband’s employer, shared her plight and asked for help. He had asked how he could help, and he asked her what she had in her house. Her response: she had a flask of olive oil.
Olive oil was a much-used commodity in Old Testament times. For cooking, lighting, apothecary and more. It was useful and necessary and she had only a flask left. A very small container – about a cup. To sustain the lives of her sons and herself. She was a desperate woman.
She had creditors breathing down her back, she and her sons were getting hungry, and were grieving too. Life was incredibly hard.
Elisha had her scour the neighborhood for jars, borrowing jars from friends and neighbors. These people knew her plight. Now she was in the humiliating position of begging – asking for jars. Empty jars. I can imagine this got everyone scratching their heads as to why she wanted empty ones – what was she going to do with them?
Scripture tells us she obeyed – her sons brought her jar after jar. Then in a room behind closed doors, she filled jars, one after another as her sons brought them to her. She told Elisha her jars were full – his response: sell the oil to pay her debt and the remainder was for her and her sons to live on.
Are you in a pickle? Or a pickle without a jar? Finding yourself running without any options left or direction to actually follow? Desperate, lonely, out of time and out of cash?
We do not need to run to Elisha. We need to run to Jesus. He is the only One who can help. Let me repeat. He. Is. The. Only. One. Who. Can. Help.
He knows what it means to be emptied. He knows what it means to have no place to sleep. He knows the pangs of hunger. He knows sleepless nights. He knows loss. He knows pain. He knows suffering.
However, He does not know worry. Because He did not. Think about the time when He was in the boat with the disciples in the great storm. While the boat was tossed around in the tumultuous sea, the disciples freaked and Jesus slept. (See Mark 4:38). Jesus gives us an example of what to do when our world comes crashing in.
Go to sleep on a pillow. A pillow of hope. Of peace. Or trust. We are to cast our cares on Him because Jesus is the only hope we have. He is our Rescuer, and Redeemer. Our Salvation. He saves us. And He lives to intercede for us. He talks about us all day long with His Father, our Father (Romans 8:34).
Run to Jesus with your empty jars. Let Him fill them. Your jars could be empty hands, empty heart, empty time. Regardless. Put them all in the Master’s hand and you will be filled to overflowing with hope, peace and trust. In abundance.
Father God, thank You for giving me hope. Sustaining hope. And a reason to believe, because I am tired of trying to hold it all together. You are amazing and You care about me. Forgive me for running away from rather than to You. I come now with my empty jars. Fill them. Fill them with Yourself. If only one is filled it is enough. But I know You will fill everything I bring. So, I bring them all. And I’ll keep bringing them. Thank You. Amen
