I Kings 17: 8-16; Mark 12: 41-44

Do you know the difference between prosperity, recession and depression? One man tried. During prosperity you are annoyed that your dog and cat will not eat the expensive canned food you buy for them. In a recession you are delighted that they won’t eat the expensive canned food. Stay that way until things get better. In a depression you begin to look thoughtfully at the dog and cat.

Two widows faced tough times. The first widow prepared to die. She scrounges for sticks to make her last fire to bake her last bit of flour and oil, have that with her son and die. She was captive to her mess. Millions of people today live like that widow. They face death each day. Nineteen million people have been made refugees from their homes, by natural disasters, or hatred between peoples. Disrupted life for so many. The numbers too big to grasp. Count all the people of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, then throw in the state of California. You get a better picture. Each day there is but one thing on your mind: bread and water! Hopeless! That was how the widow of Zarephath moved through her last hours. She was preparing for her last meal. Captive to her mess.

Some of you have known such times as that widow. You might have lived through the Great Depression. Or, you have experienced your own personal economic collapse. More than 26 million Americans are below what is called the poverty level. "One in three young families is only one paycheck away from bankruptcy. "I used to live in the lap of luxury," said one fellow. "Then luxury stood up."

For those of us who have work we know that goods and services have made it harder to live. I heard that the price of a mid-size new car is about three times what the price was for the explorer Christopher Columbus to make three trips to the new world.

The second widow faced tough times, too. But she was captive to a message from God. She placed her two coins into the treasury required by Temple law. She knew that God supplied her needs through the Temple. Her giving at the Temple meant something very real. She knew her Supplier. She gave all she had, but knew He gave more!

Who we depend upon determines how we live. Let’s call this message a commercial break. God asks: do we want to trust a "Great Supposer," or the "Great Supplier?" Want to know which you might trust? A Great Supposer gives us hints: invest your money in high tech stocks, or the dot.com ventures. Everyone does well. Why not me?

"Alan Greenspan, Help me!" That might be the cry of many who trust any Great Supposer, and forget the Great Supplier. I am not picking on Mr. Greenspan. He has served our nation well, as Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board. The United States has had one of the greatest economies the world has ever experienced. But now, the strains on prosperity are now showing. Job lay-offs, mergers and plant closings we like to think that if all the Greenspans could get together, our problems would be over. "I suppose lower I could lower the interest rates. How much? ½%? Too high? Too low?" "Careful! No! More! Hey, cut it some more so I can make it. Save us, keep us going onward and upward." Supposers can only guess. Guess right- we do not have to trust God. We can still have everything the way we want it.

We want cheap fruits and vegetables. We do not want to pick it ourselves. Give the jobs to Latin Americans, but make it miserable for them to live here. We want to travel when we want, where we want. But make sure gas is cheap. We want huge servings of food at restaurants, but we waste over ½ of each plate. "Come on, Alan G., Help me!"

All the Alan Greenspans of this world cannot supply, they can only suppose, or guess, and hope to get it right. But, like one quipped, "Due to the economic crisis, the light at the end of the tunnel is turned off until further notice." Those economists need the same Supplier that the two widows and Elijah knew. They knew Him because they had no where else to go. They had to trust God!

What do we do when troubles come, and our resources are scarce? It could be money. It could be that our physical health fails? When our marriage struggles for life? Supposers guess - the Great Supplier gives! The first widow discovered what Elijah and the second widow learned. These are basics about God and us. They are very simple. Let’s review:

Trust God. Don’t give up. God sees you and cares for you!

Elijah declared that a drought would be on Israel for the sins of King Ahab and his wife, Queen Jezebel. Elijah was hurting. He had been fed by ravens along the brook Cherith. The brook dried up, but God spoke! "Go to Zarephath...I’ve commanded a widow to provide for you." The widow did not know of the command until Elijah showed up.

"Bring me a little water...(and) a piece of bread in your hand..." The desperate plight of the widow and her son didn’t stop Elijah. He continued: "Do not fear!...Bring to me first, then, take care of your own needs, for thus says the Lord God of Israel, the bowl of flour shall not be exhausted, nor shall the jar of oil be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain..." Elijah spoke not for himself, but for God. He helped the widow get her focus on the great Supplier, not on what she had in hand. That was the first lesson. Change your focus. The promise of supply was offered her. Could she TRUST GOD? Something very powerful happened. She heard the words, DO NOT FEAR!, and believed that was just for her! Trust God! Easier said than done! It takes a lot of faith to give up your very last meal to a stranger.

We like the idea of faith, but honestly it scares us to death. A little boy wanted to impress his father that he could swim. "Look at me, daddy, I’m swimming!" Spashing and seeming to swim, he confessed later, "You’re right, daddy, I have one foot on the bottom of the pool." Swimming instructors like to get children as young as possible. They know that younger children do not have the fear of water that older ones seem to get. It is that faith like a child, that we need to recover.

It is an enormous step to abandon our fears and trust God. The older we are, the harder it often is. If you find yourself at the end of your own rope, whatever it may be, you come to a point where you have to let go...and let God do His part. Want to test it with your own pocketbook? Ouch! If you have never given 10% of your income to God, and your bills are desperate, why not try the tithe? Try it for two pay periods. You find out that if you pay God first, the rest will be manageable! My God shall supply all my needs in glory by one Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4) Now the second basic review:

That woman went from giving up, to going on. She had to do something each day. She did what she had to do. She gave to Elijah, as unto God Himself. Then, she and her son sat down to eat. They did, again and again. Could you imagine her faith growing each day? I certainly can! I wonder what day it was that she just KNEW the flour and oil would be enough! Three days, weeks, months? One day she was captured by the message: Trust God! You have nothing to lose! How about you? Can you trust God? How many pay periods would go by before you recognized God took care of all your needs and even blessed you with a few desires met? One? Two? Three? Then, you can take the next step that will move you through tough times.

I know some people seem paralyzed by their struggles. Still others like to pass on blame for their mess. I hope no one is like the farmer on his deathbed talking to his wife. "Martha, remember the time our house burned down. You were there, my dear." "Yes, John, I was." "And remember the time our wheat crop was lost in a terrible storm? You were there, my dear." "Yes, John, I was." "And remember the time, Martha, that the bank took our farm away?" "Yes, John, I do." "Say, Martha, you know? I think you are the one who brings me bad luck."

I am sure you all know of people who did not give up. In 1986, at age 100, Harry Platt died in his home of Manchester, England. He founded the schools to start modern orthopedic surgery. Well respected and loved, he was a miracle in front of all. As a child he was a chronic invalid from serious bone and joint disabilities throughout his body. He could have given up. He did not. He learned to turn the "scar into a star."

Boris Becker played tennis like that. He never gave up on a shot, nor on a game. Diving, stabbing, and catching most shots others would miss, he caught more opponents by shear hustle. "If I kept going, I believed good things would happen!"

This first widow went on with God. A good lesson. So did Elijah. He spoke up for God. Some people wonder if they should intervene if someone threatens suicide. Yes! We could be the one voice that will turn a tragedy into a triumph of living.

"Tough times never last, tough people do!" People like you, who know that those Great Supposers of this world cannot touch the Great Supplier! Just think - for our sin, He supplied our Salvation. For sadness in life - He supplies gladness (His presence). For all our failures - He supplies a future (His mercies are new every morning)!

Trust God - Don’t Give up! And the third review:

God watched over Elijah to bring him through the drought. He watched over the widow in Zarephath and her son and sent help in the prophet. He watched as the widow placed her two coins in the treasury and observed, "she gave all she had."

Do think God cannot see you? Your need? If the answer is "yes," your god is too small. Get a bigger God. The One who created this world, redeemed this world through the amazing death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. He wants you to call Him "Father!" He sees you and cares for you! He knows right where you are and what you need to make it through your own crisis: financial, physical, or relational. Good news!

Alan Greenspan and his friends can only play with percentages. He will never get them right. God Himself comes into the picture that we are living and gets it right every time!