DAY – 23
JEHOVAH JIREH
THE LORD WILL PROVIDE
So, Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided" (Gen 22: 14)
JEHOVA JIREH is one of our God's most popular names. After Isaac was born, Abraham, a friend of the Most High God, was summoned by the Almighty and given a set of instructions. "Take Isaac, your only son, whom you love, and sacrifice him on the mountain I show you," God said (Gen 22:2). In Hebrew, the word "sacrifice" means "whole or burnt offering." God instructed Abraham to go to an undisclosed location to sacrifice his son, only for God to intervene at the last moment. There, Abraham came across a ram caught in some thorny bushes, sacrificed it, and named the location "The Lord Will Provide." Abraham didn't just recognize that God provides the goods; he also stated, "You see all the needs in my life and make provision for them." Abraham had a profound personal experience. He acknowledged that our God sees, that He is with us, and that He provides for us. It is His promise as well as His character.
"And my God shall supply all your needs according to His richest Glory," the scripture says (Phil 4:19). He feeds the ravens whenever they ask, and says we are more valuable than ravens for God to feed us in the same way. Surprisingly, God meets both needs and desires in human life.
Let's look at what 'need' and 'want' really mean.
1. 'God meets our needs.'
The Lord sent Elijah, the Prophet, to a region called Zarephath because famine had struck the area where he lived and the brook had dried up due to a lack of rain in the land. He was directed to a widow in the area who could meet his (Elijah's) needs. So he went to the location that God had indicated. When he arrived at the town gate, he noticed a widow gathering sticks. "Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I can have a drink and a piece of bread to eat?" he asked. The destitute widow, on the other hand, agreed to use the last piece of bread and oil she had saved for her son and herself to eat and die, after Elijah said, "The jar of flour will not be used up, and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land" (1Kings 17:14). The widow's obedience demonstrated her faith. And God kept His word: "She and he and her household ate for many days." The jar of flour was not depleted, nor was the jug of oil depleted, according to the LORD's word, which he spoke through Elijah." As promised, the widow's food supply was supernaturally extended. Thus, the Lord miraculously met the widow's need, who was about to die of starvation.
2. 'God provides for our wants.'
Elkanah was an Ephraimite who had two wives, one named Hannah and the other Peninnah. Hannah had no children, whereas Peninnah did. Hannah's rival continued to provoke her to irritate her because the Lord had closed her womb. As time passed, Hannah happened to visit the Lord's house in Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty. Hannah prayed to the Lord in her deep anguish, weeping bitterly, and made a vow, saying, "Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a SON, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life."Take a look at Hannah's prayer; she didn't just want a child; she begged God for a boy child. And the Lord answered her specific prayer by blessing her with the boy baby 'Samuel' (1Sam 1:20).
Dear God's Children, we have a God who loves us as much as our earthly father loves us. He invites us to be His children. He claims "Will any of you who are evil give a child a snake when he asks for fish and a stone when he asks for bread? If not, how much more will I, your Heavenly Father, provide for you? ". He is sufficient to meet both our needs and desires. All things will be given to us if we seek His Kingdom and righteousness first, as the Father knows before we ask. All we have to do is walk blamelessly before Him, and He will not withhold anything good from us (Ps 84:11).
God's love for us began even before we were born. His love for us is encapsulated in His desire for our best interests. God's provision includes His ongoing relationship with all of His creation, which is completely reliant on Him (Ps 104:21). We frequently take for granted the rain that falls, the sun that rises every morning, the cool winds that blow, and the tides that clean our shores and energize the life in our vast oceans. But, in His provision for us, our loving God keeps an eye on all of these things. Take heart; He will grant all of your wishes. Amen!!
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