Paying the cost when funds are low.

Have you ever been there? You see the price tag attached, but don’t have the funds. You not only have to have it, but need it. This isn’t an accessory, this is a critical purchase that defines how you’ll live your day. It’s not the equivalent of purchasing toothpaste to brush your teeth. It’s more like purchasing water in a drought to put out the fire that started in your backyard. Wild analogy, I know, but you get it. The point is, you have to find a way to obtain the resource when what you have to give doesn’t match its price. 

I’ve been there. Actually, that’s where I was a few months ago. Tackling flames with a spray bottle because I didn’t have the funds to extinguish the fire with the resources I needed. It cost too much, and my funds were low. But I want to share the story of a woman who was in the same position, and got to the other side. She taught me the importance of taking inventory of everything in your possession so you’re not deceived to think that what you have isn’t enough. 

In 2 Kings 4:1-7, it reads:

The Widow’s Olive Oil

1 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.”

2 Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”

“Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil.”

3 Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”

5 She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. 6 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”

But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.

7 She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

Let’s break this story down together.

1. Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?”

Elisha realized this woman was in distress. Her husband was gone and her sons were going to be taken away from her soon. She was in fight or flight. But notice that he did not save her because of her outcry, instead, he used this opportunity to empower her to have confidence in God, and that what she has to give is enough. So he asked her about what she has. This can be us. Sometimes we are so emotionally clouded that we haven’t yet taken inventory of what we even need, or what we might be overlooking. 

2. “Your servant has nothing there at all….except a small jar of olive oil”

The woman, still in distress, emotionally responds to his questions. Then, after a pause, she practically shares what is in her house, but naming it as “small”. I picture this woman with tears running down her face and eyes closed. She’s probably been rehearsing the same lie in her mind over and over again for a long time. The lie that “she has nothing at all”. But I think Elisha was patient with her. I think he got quiet and let the Holy Spirit bring a truth to her mind - that there’s a jar of olive oil way back in the pantry that she forgot about, until this moment. 

What lie have we told ourselves over and over again that is not allowing us to see the resource that’s been there all along? And she didn’t come to this realization alone, God’s servant stood with her as she processed what was available to her to use. Sometimes we can get to these conclusions alone, and sometimes we need to lean on our community to remind us of what we have when we get weary.

3. Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. 4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.”

He instructed her to give to her neighbors the very thing she was lacking. He told her to be generous, not just asking for a few jars, but all of their empty jars. And to sacrifice her supply for the sake of others. This is where obedience comes in. Naturally, subtracting lessens what you have. But with God, giving multiplies what you possess. In Luke 6:38, it says “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” The woman’s obedience was tested. Her husband was dead, she inherited an incredible amount of debt, and her sons were going to be taken as slaves to pay the debt back. She was about to lose everything that she had, but she trusted that the last thing she had to give would provide her the supply to keep everything she has. 

4. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.”But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing.

Once her obedience provided evidence of the supernatural provision of God, she sought out more jars to fill, until there was none left. Her obedience increased her wisdom. She trusted the instruction she was given, and once she saw that everything she was giving was being returned back to her, she was enthusiastic to continue to give until she had nothing left.

5. She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

After she and her neighbors were filled, she had more than enough to pay the cost of what this season was demanding of her. This part of the story stands out to me. Often we think about God cancelling the debt. Crying out to Him and sharing how it’s not our fault, but the responsibility has unfairly fallen on our shoulders. God didn’t cancel the debt, but He supernaturally provided her the capacity needed to continue to pay it off and live comfortably. 

As a coach, I resonate with Elisha. God spoke through him to allow the woman to uncover what she had and how to use it. And in my coaching practice, my role is to design the conditions where clients can do their best thinking, and make their best decisions. Elisha didn’t do anything to solve her problem, He reminded her that God is her ever present help in time of need.

So I leave you with a few questions: What’s your oil? What’s the thing you have that you called “small” that God is waiting for you to bring out and give to others? And who can you give it to? Because the very answer to all of these questions might be the funds you need to carry the cost of your season. 

With Love,

Elle Bee