I just returned home from the longest, most tiring week of my life. My wife and I were head counselors at a multi-denominational youth camp this week (#SummerEscape18), which was a first for me. I literally have been sleeping for two whole days just trying to catch up. Every man has a breaking point and I'm not afraid to admit I almost hit mine. Heat, exhaustion, and lack of sleep affected me physically, even to the point of illness; unexpected duties and uncanny issues left me mentally drained. Upon arriving home, I dragged myself into the house where our teenagers had been staying all week, exhausting the grocery supply. I opened the pantry and found very few snack options, but in front my my face was a jar of olive oil. That's when revelation came.
In the third chapter of 2 Kings a widow was facing an insurmountable problem. Her husband died and her creditors required her children to be sold into slavery in order to pay her debts. She approached the prophet, Elisha, who asked her "what do you have in your house?" "Nothing but a jar of oil", she replied. Elisha instructed her to borrow empty vessels from all of her neighbors, as many as she could find, then pour the jar of oil she had into the empty vessels, setting them aside as they were filled. See anything wrong with these instructions? Imagine being told to fill 10 trash barrels with a 12 oz. can of Mountain Dew. Nevertheless, the widow followed the instructions. The little jar of oil stopped flowing only after every vessel she had collected had been filled. She was able to sell the vessels of oil, pay off her debts, and save her children from the bondage of slavery.
Karen Wheaton of The Ramp, a high-impact youth ministry in Alabama, often shares a word God gave her as she committed herself to building The Ramp. God told her " What you invest in the lives of other young people, you will reap in your own children." My wife and I have taken this principle to heart and have committed to supporting young men and women with our finances, our time, and our prayers. This week of camp was exhausting, but every minute was worth it. Seeing God move in the lives of the students meant more to me than sleep. Watching the counselors and staff pour themselves out, each well past their own capabilities, was as amazing to me as it must have been for the widow's two sons to watch her continue pouring oil from a tiny jar into many larger vessels. There was one counselor who really concerned me. He did nothing wrong - I just watched with awe as he handled one mess after another. I kept thinking "he's not coming back next year". Before he left for the week, he approached me with tears in his eyes and said "I got much more from these kids than they got from me". I thought he was empty - he was more full than when he arrived.
If only we could embrace the fullness of this revelation - our supply has limits; God's supply doesn't. He will provide the energy, rest, patience, and perseverance we need to complete the work into which He has called us. God can multiply what we have. He can turn a little rest into a lot of rest. He can turn a little bit of faith into a mountain of faith. He can take a limited supply of energy and turn it into an excess. We should all be willing to keep pouring, as long as God sends us vessels who need filled. I challenge you to say "yes" the next time you're approached with a ministry opportunity that seems to be too much. Whether you feel you lack in qualification, skills, energy, time, finances, etc. - God will take the little you have and multiply it. Don't look at your little supply; look at your big God.
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