.
No
matter what difficult circumstances you may be facing, God wants you to know
you can turn to Him as your “very present help” in times of trouble. Even though you may
feel surrounded by problems on every side, the Lord wants to be your HOPE. Perhaps
you’re feeling like your “brook” dried up and God’s help and provision were
nowhere to be found. The key to a turnaround in your life is right there in
your hand! God promises that if you keep the words of His Covenant, you will
“prosper in all that you do.” And as you are blessed, you can BE a blessing to
others — sending the hope and salvation of Jesus Christ to the nations of the
world.
by
David Cerullo
If you’ve watched any TV news lately, you’ve
seen reports of the stress and hopelessness many people are experiencing today.
Layoffs, unemployment, foreclosures,
bankruptcies, and natural disasters are putting enormous pressure on families
to give up hope and succumb to despair.
This is not just the experience of
unbelievers.
I meet many Christians who face difficult
times in their finances, health, family, or emotions.
Like Job and many other men and women in the
Bible, they’re at the end of their rope, and their faith is being tested.
At such times, we need to know where to turn
for help:
“I lift up my eyes to
the mountains —
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:1-2 NIV).
Friend, no matter what difficult
circumstances you may be facing, God wants you to know you can turn to Him as
your “very present help” in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1).
Even though you may
feel surrounded by problems on every side, the Lord wants to be your HOPE — “the
One who lifts [your] head” (Psalm 3:3).
When the Brook Dries Up
Sometimes we forget that men and women in the
Bible often went through trials very similar to those we face today.
For example, even
though God provided Elijah with food brought by ravens and water from a brook, “it
happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain
in the land” (1
Kings 17:7).
Have you ever felt like your “brook”
dried up and God’s help and provision were nowhere to be found?
Perhaps you’re feeling that way today,
struggling to make ends meet and wondering whether God will be faithful to meet
your needs.
At times like these, it’s important to
remember that whenever you ask the Lord for a miracle, He will give you an
instruction.
In Elijah’s case, God
told him to go to Zarephath: “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to
Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you”
(1 Kings
17:9).
Without debate or
delay, Elijah “arose and went to Zarephath” (verse 10).
He chose to obey, knowing that obedience was
his only hope of unlocking God’s supernatural provision in his life.
It Only Takes a “Handful”
Just as Elijah had to
choose whether or not to obey God’s instructions, so the widow he found in
Zarephath faced a difficult decision when the prophet told her, “Please
bring me a morsel of bread in your hand” (verse 11).
This may not seem
like a very difficult request, but you have to understand the woman’s situation:
“I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in
a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare
it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die” (verse 12).
What a dilemma.
This widow had almost nothing left… only a “handful”
of flour and a little bit of oil. But you see, this “HANDFUL” was the
key to her miracle!
“Faced with a
seemingly hopeless situation, the widow could’ve surrendered to fear and
unbelief… but instead, she CHOSE HOPE and obeyed God’s instruction!”
As long as the woman held on to her meager
supply of food, that’s all she had.
But when she obeyed God’s instructions and
released what was in her hand, God intervened in her circumstances and released
the supernatural abundance that was in HIS hand!
Although the Lord’s instructions to this poor
widow must have seemed totally unreasonable, His purpose was not her demise but
her BLESSING!
Elijah assured her
that if she would obey, “The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall
the jar of oil run dry, until the day the LORD sends rain on the earth” (verse 14).
She chose to obey the
prophet of the Lord, and the result was MIRACULOUS provision: “She and he
and her household ate for many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did
the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by
Elijah” (verses
15-16).
What an amazing miracle!
In a time of drought and famine, this
desperate woman went from having “not enough” to having “more than
enough.”
From the brink of starvation and death, she
experienced life and abundance — all because she chose to obey the man of God
and believe the Lord’s word to her.
What’s in Your Hand?
Remember: The key to a turnaround in your
life is not in some far-off place — it’s right there in your hand!
But here’s the problem:
“What you have in
your hand must be transferred into God’s hand!”
How much food does it take to feed more than
5,000 hungry people?
Only five loaves of bread and two fish, IF
they are transferred into Jesus’ hands and blessed by Him (Matthew 14:14-21)!
But how many people could have been fed
without Jesus’ blessing on these loaves and fish? Maybe five or ten!
In Exodus 4:2, God
asks Moses the same question He’s asking you today: “What is that in your
hand?”
All Moses had in his hand at that point was a
simple wooden shepherd’s rod.
But after he laid it down and surrendered it
into the Lord’s hand, it was transformed into “the rod of God” (Exodus 4:20) —
o able to part the Red
Sea (Exodus
14:21),
o bring water out of a
rock (Exodus
17:5-6),
and
o
gain
supernatural victory over enemy armies (Exodus 17:8-13).
“Friend, I believe
your breakthrough from God is at hand — and it’s literally in your hand!
Whatever breakthrough you need from Him — whether in your finances, marriage,
job, health, or children — the key is surrendering all of your resources into
the hands of your Almighty Covenant Partner.”
God Wants to Bless You!
During this difficult season in the world’s
economy, it’s more important than ever to keep God’s commandments.
Sow your financial Seeds into the Good Ground
of His Kingdom, wrap your faith with expectation, and be fully persuaded that
He will bless you!
God promises that if
you keep the words of His Covenant, you will “prosper in all that you do”
(Deuteronomy
29:9).
And as you are blessed, you can BE a blessing
to others — sending the hope and salvation of Jesus Christ to the nations of
the world.
David Cerullo is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Inspiration Ministries, located in Indian Land, South Carolina – a ministry dedicated to impacting people for Christ worldwide through media. The son of international evangelist Morris Cerullo, David took a less traditional approach to ministry, graduating from Oral Roberts University with a degree in business administration and management. He has authored over 20 books, and operates a global media ministry that powerfully impacts the world for Christ. More from David on Inspiration.org.
https://inspiration.org/david-cerullo/strengthen-your-walk/choosing-hope/
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