"The Widow's Last Bread"

“THE WIDOW’S LAST BREAD”
 
            For the 10th painting in this “Women of Inspiration” series, I felt impressed to paint a woman who exemplified service. So often we read in the scriptures that we cannot obtain the kingdom of God if we have not charity. Jesus Christ taught:“Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” (See Matt. 7:12.) And King Benjamin in the Book of Mormon taught:“When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.” Perhaps these scriptures are trying to tell us that a life without service is a life not worth living and that through loosing ourselves in service to our brothers and sisters, we will find true happiness for ourselves. What a wonderful example this widow is for us – down to her last morsel of food, yet willing to give it to a stranger! She is posed as if she is offering her last bread to the viewer... you. And I hope that this painting will remind all of us of the sacred responsibility to care for one another and to go out of our way to perform acts of kindness every day.
 
1 Kings 17: 10- 16 :   “So he (Elijah) 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.”
 
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