It’s In the Bible
You Should Read It!
Essay Posted June 12, 2007 by James E. Nelson
Brenda and I were in northwest Arkansas visiting dad last week and had need of jewelry, so we stopped by Dollar General in Rogers, where we found exactly what we were looking for—a tasteful neckless for just over a buck. While checking out I had the oddest conversation with the clerk.
Clerk: There was this woman and her son who ate pancakes and they only had two pancakes left. Did you ever hear the story?
Me: No, I don’t believe I have.
Clerk: And this man came along and told them to give him the two pancakes because he was hungry. But the woman said it was their last two pancakes, but the man said if they did give him the pancakes, something special would happen. So the woman gave the man the pancakes, and the woman and her son lived forever. It’s in the Bible, you know. You should read it.
Me: Oh, I guess I hadn’t read that story.
Pausing to gather his thoughts, the clerk scanned and bagged the jewelry, candle and decorative stickers.
Clerk: Ever hear of Boaz?
Me (thinking to myself): Wow this guy is a veritable cornucopia of Biblical knowledge. A sort of walking Arkansas Encyclopedia of Bible content.
Me (out loud, but vaguely as possible): Wasn’t he married or something?
Clerk: Yeah, there was this woman, I think her name was Marian, or Katherine, (a shadow of doubt crosses his brow) . . . or something. They didn't have any food, so her mother-in-law told her she needed to go get a job, but the girl wanted to remain a virgin.
Me (thinking to myself): Oh boy, I hope this story isn’t going in the direction I think it might.
Clerk: So this lady went out and found a job collecting grain . . .
Me (thinking to myself): Whew! Back on track.
Clerk: . . . and she was able to give some of the grain to her mother-in-law so they could eat. And eventually she met the guy who ran the company and they got married. It’s in the Bible, you know. You should read it.
Me (suddenly at a loss): Oh.
Clerk: It’s a true story, you know. It happened in . . . Well, I don’t remember the town, but it was somewhere over in the Middle East.
Having received my change, I thanked him for the stories and, just like the disciples, headed for my car. It’s in the Bible you know. (“And when the Day of Pentecost came, the disciples were all in one Accord” Acts 2:1. Granted there were only eleven at this point, but the Accord must have been a bigger car back then.)
And by the way. I don’t think it happened in the Middle East, like the kid at the Dollar General said. I googled the location of Zarephath and discovered it’s a town in New Jersey. I knew Elijah traveled a long way to get away from that drought, but I had no idea he made it all the way to New Jersey. (Although, this makes sense. A lot of the Arabs in our church have relatives in that area. Deacon Jim even calls it “the Old Country.”) Elijah probably caught a Viking ship or something to get to Zarephath. I’ll have to check my Bible to see if it sheds any light on the subject. After all, like the kid said, I should read it.
Copyright © 2007 James E. Nelson (Just Another Jim). All Rights Reserved.
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