Borrowed Breath

Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside.” So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her. When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest” (II Kings 4.1-7 ESV). 

I’ve heard sermon illustrations on this verse that emphasized the importance of faith, and the blessings that came from it. If the widow had merely borrowed one or two jars, that is all of the oil she would have received. And if she would have gotten more, she would have collected more oil. Her reward was directly tied to her faith. And that is certainly a viable interpretation of this passage. 

Yet last Friday evening, Steve told this story from the Bible, and explained the heart of their ministry, Hope Beyond Borders. He emphasized the prophet’s question in verse two, “What do you have in the house?” Steve called our attention to this inquiry because that is the central point of Hope Beyond Borders. And they live this out here in Coatesville and in Zambia, Africa. 

Their mission statement is:

“To activate the potential that lies within communities around the world by identifying, empowering and mobilizing local leadership teams with the training and resources to guide their own communities’ toward reconciliation and restoration.”

Rather than saying, “This is what we are bringing to you to get you out of…” the missionaries of Hope Beyond Borders ask the question, “What do you have?” And then they take what is already present in that community, and cultivate it and pour in to it until it is self-sustaining. It is an empowering ministry. They don’t want the people to be dependent on them. They will always be available as a resource. But they want the leaders of the community to step up and lead. 

This emphasis is so crucial to the continual restoration of communities. And I am grateful for people like Steve and Stefanie and Susan and Crispin and the others who are willing to merely be a stepping stone for others’ self-sustaining healing and dependence on Christ alone. These truly missional missionaries are making a difference, and with this mindset, there is no limit to the impact they will make in others’ lives.