Christian A.C.T.S.: Steps of Faith~ 3rd week after Penecost

I Kings 17:8-24:God tells Elijah to go into a Zarephath and stayed with a widow there.

Ps. 146:Praise to God who not only made all of creation, but who also takes care of the opressed and widows. Even when they are hungry.

Gal. 1:11-24:Paul speaks of his calling to take the gospel to the non-Jewish people of the earth.

Luke 7:11-17:Jesus heals the only son of a widow.

In Psalm 146, praises was sang of the fact that God is not only powerful enough to make the earth, but loving enough to take care of the oppressed and widows. See see examples of this in both the Old and New testaments. Let's look at a couple of them, shall we?

In I Kings 17:8-24, God tells Elijah to go into a Zarephath and stay in the home of a widow there during a drought. He obeyed and went. When he got to town he asked her for water and some bread. She explained to him that she only had enough flour and oil to make just enough bread for her and her son and then they would die. Elijah told her to go and make bread for him first and them for herself and her son. I believed this was a test to see how great her faith in God was. The widow had faith for she did make Elijah bread first and gave it to him. God reward her by making the flour and oil last until the drought was over. While Elijah was staying in her home the widow's son died. She went to Elijah and asked him for help. Elijah prayed to God, asking for God to return life to him and the son came back to life(I Kings 17:8-24). These are good examples of how God took care of a widow and her son who was oppressed at the time.

In Like 7:11-17, we see Jesus showing compassion on a widow when he raised the only son of a widow from the dead. This was important as in their time and culture, the men supported the women. In their culture, a son would be the one taking care of his widowed Mother, not the government. The poorest in the land were the widows who had no son to support them. So Jesus was show great compassion when he brought her son back to life.

In Galatians 1:11-24, Paul speaks of how Jesus called him out of his religious ways with the Jews, and called him to go to those who were non-Jews. In this way, God was showing compassion on all of us who are not Jewish.

In all these verses, we read not only of God's compassion of the oppressed, widows and those who are not Jewish, but we also read of the faith of those who obeyed God's calling and went to show compassion on those they were called to minister to.

Challenge of the Week:

Who are you called to show compassion on this week in the name of Jesus? Look around you at those around you and extend your hand and heart to the pressed, widow, or unsaved.

Accomplishment of the week:

So... who did you show compassion to this week? How did that go? How did that help your faith grow?