Contemplative Bible Reading

1 Kings 17:5-6 (New International Version)

⁵ So he (Elijah) did what the LORD had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. ⁶ The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

These verses are about Elijah. Now Elijah did some amazing miracles by the power of God. In this and the next few chapters of 1 Kings, Elijah:

• caused the widow’s jar of flour and oil to have an endless supply
• raised the widow’s son from the dead
• did all those things with the 400 prophets of Baal and the altars
• and so on

I had not noticed the miracle of the above verses until recently. All the other things had overshadowed these verses. Let’s consider:

birds brought bread and meat to Elijah twice a day

Now maybe I could understand birds bringing little piece of meat – tiny pieces of meat – to a person as adult birds will do that for their young when the young are in the nest. Large enough pieces of meat to sustain a man? And then their is the bread. Where on earth were the ravens finding the bread?

That is a miracle. God caused birds to bring food to sustain a man.

God, help me to notice the miracles you perform in front of my eyes everyday. Help me to appreciate them.