I Kings 17:8-16 “And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.”

Text Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Upon arriving at Zarephath, Elijah is met by a widow gathering sticks to prepare what she thinks is to be her last meal. After hearing her plan for the day, Elijah responded by saying, “me . . . first” (vs.13). At first glance Elijah’s response appears to be a very callous and selfish in nature! Truth is; Elijah is setting forth a principle that will not only meet the widow’s need for the day, but for the future. There is nothing wrong with the widow’s plan, just her priority. There was nothing wrong with the daily task of working and preparing for the daily necessities of life; the problem is, who comes first?  Elijah is not asking her to alter her plan, but rather her priorities! Elijah is not asking her to succumb to the wishes of men, but to submit to the word of the Master; “I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee” (vs.9). Where in lies the problem with most of our lives; we have satisfactory plans, but sorry priorities! Is it any wonder why we, like this widow, are continually faced with the repetitive struggles of daily living? There is nothing wrong with having a job, owning a car, pursuing a hobby, raising a family, or having a desire to better oneself; God is in no way against your plan, but He may be in opposition to your priority! The truth is the woman never changed her plan, she repetitively pursued the daily necessities of life; she just changed her priority. With the same plan, but a different priority, “she, and he, and her house, did eat many days” (vs.15). God said, “Me First!”