Feeding unexpected visitors

38 Elisha now returned to Gilgal, and there was a famine in the land. One day as the group of prophets was seated before him, he said to his servant, “Put a large pot on the fire, and make some stew for the rest of the group.”

39 One of the young men went out into the field to gather herbs and came back with a pocketful of wild gourds. He shredded them and put them into the pot without realizing they were poisonous.40 Some of the stew was served to the men. But after they had eaten a bite or two they cried out, “Man of God, there’s poison in this stew!” So they would not eat it.

41 Elisha said, “Bring me some flour.” Then he threw it into the pot and said, “Now it’s all right; go ahead and eat.” And then it did not harm them. (2 King 4:38-41 NLT)

Have you ever had unexpected visitors and had nothing in the house to feed them? If you have, you’ll feel sympathy for Elisha’s servant who was told to put out food for an entire class of hungry youths …… in a time of famine.

Challenge accepted, the servant hurried out into the fields to grab all the greens he could find to serve them boiled up in a stew. In his haste, he grabbed what looked like delicious cucumbers but which were, in fact, bitter cucumbers that were a violent purgative.

One taste and the young men recoiled and declared there was poison in the stew. (At this point my mind wanders to those poor hapless dinner guests in Morwell who were served the infamous Beef Wellington by their malicious host and ponder if only they could’ve tasted the poisonous mushrooms).

Elisha simply took some flour, indelicately flung it into the pot, the stew was remedied and everyone ate freely without any problems.

I’ve learnt 2 things from this story.

1. We can go to a lot of trouble to make delicious meals, but, really, simple meals are sufficient. Jesus said as much to Martha when she was fussing over her meal preparations (Luke 10:38-42).

   Again, Proverbs 15:17 (NLT) says, "A bowl of vegetables with someone you love is better than steak with someone you hate”.

   Some of my most memorable meals have been unusual by my cultural standards: such as boiled fish heads, steamed beetles, piles of red ant eggs, and a white stew that was full of what appeared to be bark. It was the atmosphere that made the meals memorable, not the meals themselves.

2. In God’s goodness He not only provides our food but He makes it nourishing and wholesome.

   “I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread” (Psa 132:15 KJV). We ask for food, and God is faithful to provide: “Give us this day our daily bread” Matt 6:11 KJV).

   
   

   It is God who fills us. It is God who feeds us and it is God who blesses us. When we grasp those principles, unexpected guests can be welcomed into our homes and to our meal tables without a second thought.

   
   

   Bon appetit!

   
   
   
   

#kristinatrott #thepoweryouhaveavailable  #thewingsofadove  #trottpublishing #2Kings4 #unexpectedguests #Godprovides #dailybread