Psalm 55: 4-8  My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen on me.  Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.   I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.”

The prayer above sounds like someone on the verge of suicide.  Is there anything worth to live for?  There must be something within, something small we can offer like that kid who offered 5 loaves and 2 fish and then Jesus will work with that.

But I seem to hear people say such things as these to their teachers: “How shall we continue to live, if we do not care for the getting of money?  and how shall we satisfy our needs?  How are loans to be repaid, and how shall a gift be bestowed upon him who asks it, if we are all to follow the admonition of Jesus and be poor by distributing all we have?”  This is the objection of an unbeliever, the speech of one devoid of understanding, who does not know that God is our Master, the director of our life, and that He himself furnishes the living creature what it needs, the means of getting both necessary food and needful clothing.  For the providence of God is over all His works, and the misfortune of poverty never overtakes one who is rich in faith.  Faith and hope in the Lord is lacking and that is the root of the problem.

In the history of the kings a widow woman is mentioned who, on account of her solitary condition was greatly oppressed.  A greedy and rude creditor pestered her, threatening to take away as pledges for her debts, her sons who were all she had left.  And when the crisis in her affairs came and none of the rich had pity on her, she went to him who had humanity and faith.  Now this was Elisha the prophet, a man poor in this world’s goods, but abounding in immaterial wealth; an unworldly soul from among the plowmen, houseless, homeless, dressed with but one garment; who had just had a legacy, and had received as his inheritance a cheap sheepskin and an invisible blessing, which fell from the chariot of fire.  Yet he did not send away the begging disappointed, nor did he despair of helping her because he had not what she asked, nor did he utter any despicable and doubting words, as many would have done, such as, “And where am I to get money to pay your debt?” but, like a most excellent physician when there are no medicines to be had, by an unexpected device he found a remedy for the disease and said, “Woman, what have you in the house?

Call to mind whether you have anything within, however small.  For no one is so poor as to have absolutely nothing.”  And when she replied that she had a pot with a little oil remaining in it, he said, “Prepare me a multitude of vessels.”  So she got them ready and filled them from the pot.  Thus the debt was paid to the money-lender, and the woman departed, having found a way out of her difficulties.  For the very little oil which she had told the prophet she possessed, contrary to her expectation gushed forth and filled all the jars she had made ready, and it ceased to flow only when there was not another vessel to receive it.  And the gift was matching with her need.  That was indeed oil which no plant, but the mercies of God, produced.. Therefore let the right hand of God be the hope and treasury of men,-the hand that led his people out of Egypt,  and in the desert provided abundance of good things, which brought Habakkuk to Daniel, and preserved Ishmael when he had been cast down from his mother’s arms; which provides for those of every generation; and which, finally, multiplied five barley loaves so that they equaled a great harvest, and one loaf supplied a thousand hungry men and filled a basket with fragments besides.  Let’s offer what we have to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in faith and trust Him to work in our lives.

Psalm 55: 16-18                            As for me, I call to God, and the Lord saves me. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.   He rescues me unharmed from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me.

Now to our God be glory forever and ever. Amen.