So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.” (II Kings 4:2)

“If only we had a bigger house, we could start a house church.”

“If only I had her money, I could do so much for the poor.”

“If only we had more members in our church, we could have such a great impact on our community.”

Ever make a statement like any of the above?

Quite often, when our mission/problem seems overwhelming, we are tempted to think this way, aren’t we? We look at what we don’t have and wish we had something that we lack right now.

The widow in 2 Kings 4 is faced with a seemingly insurmountable mountain of debt. She is at the point of losing all she owns, including her sons. She cannot see her way out of it. She cannot see what she has that could be used to bring about the breakthrough.

Notice how Elisha begins by asking her: “What do you have in the house?”

“Nothing but a jar of oil.” You can almost sense the despondency in her voice. Like, what good is a jar of oil to help me pay off these debilitating debts?

It is reminiscent of the time Jesus charged his disciples with the responsibility of feeding the multitudes. While they were questioning Jesus’ wisdom and calculating how much it would cost, Jesus asks a simple question: “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” (Mark 6:38)

Once they let him know what they have–five loaves and two fish—now Jesus can tell them what to do with them and the rest is history.

In a similar vein, once the widow lets Elisha know that she has something, now the prophet can release to her a strategy for multiplication that turns the jar of oil into a pipeline of profits that will help her become debt-free and indeed sustain her family for years to come.

My dear DWOD friend, are you feeling overwhelmed by your present circumstances? A goal that you have set? A mission that you have been assigned?

The Lord is asking you: “Tell me, WHAT DO YOU HAVE in the house?”

You may not have hours and hours to spend with Him just yet…just give Him the 15 minutes you do have right now…watch what He does with it!

You may not have tens of thousands of dollars to tithe. Start with the tens and twenties you do have right now…watch what He does with it!

You may not have the polished skills you need to succeed in your profession/calling. Take the rough skills you do have right now and start working with them…watch how He makes you successful!

He is not asking you for what you do not have. All you have is all He needs.

Today He is asking you: “What do you have?”

What is your answer?