I was reading 1 Kings 17, about Elijah and the widow. This poor woman, she’s trying to scrape together enough meal and oil for her and her son to die, and this prophet comes along and asks her to instead give him her last. When she agrees, oil and meal flow for days. It’s a great miracle, but what struck me was that our great God could have easily have provided oil and meal for this dying woman without the involvement of Elijah. Why would our loving God ask what must have been a difficult sacrifice of our widow? I think it was to have her assess her priorities and see if her trust was in what she sees in front of her or what she knows about God, that he is good and faithful. To see what would motivate her action, her need or her obedience to God despite her need.
Our obedience to God should always be motivated by the fact that he is our Father in heaven, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who saved us from eternal separation, and from the abundance of our love, through the working of the Holy Spirit, we seek to do HIS will on this earth, not our own. We should obey because he is our priority!
To read more: http://jasminjournals.com/the-pain-of-a-miracle/