There was a very special man in Israel named Elijah. He was a prophet of God — someone who spoke to the people the messages God gave him. In those days, the king of Israel was Ahab, a very wicked king. He married a woman named Jezebel, who worshipped false gods, and together they led the people of Israel to worship Baal, a made-up god, instead of the true God.

God was not pleased with this. He sent Elijah with a message for the king, and Elijah went bravely to Ahab and said:

That meant it was not going to rain in Israel for a long time. It was the announcement of a great drought.

After delivering that message, Elijah needed to hide, because King Ahab and Queen Jezebel would be furious and might try to kill him. But God had a plan to take care of his prophet. The Lord said to Elijah:

Elijah obeyed. He went away, did just as the Lord had said, and made his home by the brook Cherith. There he was, all alone, hidden in a deserted place. There were no towns nearby, no markets, no one to bring him food. How was he going to survive?

But God had promised: the ravens would take care of him. Do you know what ravens are? They are big birds with deep black feathers, and normally they look after no one but themselves. Ravens do not usually take care of people. But God can do extraordinary things: he gave the ravens an order, and the ravens obeyed.

Every morning, they came flying with bread and meat in their beaks for Elijah. Every evening, they came back again, bringing more bread and more meat. And Elijah drank the cool water of the brook.

Picture the scene: Elijah sitting quietly by the stream, and the ravens gliding down from the sky with his supper. It was a miracle that happened twice a day, every day.

Day after day, Elijah lived there, drinking from the brook and eating what the ravens brought. Meanwhile, in the rest of Israel, not a drop of rain fell. The fields dried up, the crops died, the streams grew shallow, and people and animals went hungry and thirsty.

But Elijah was safe in his hiding place. He had water to drink and food to eat, and he did not need to be afraid, because God had promised to take care of him — and God always keeps his promises.

After some time, though, since there was no rain in the land, the brook began to dry up. The water sank lower and lower, until nothing was left of the brook Cherith. Now what would Elijah drink? Had God forgotten him?

No. God never forgets his people, and he already had the next step of the plan ready. The word of the Lord came to Elijah:

God was sending Elijah to another place, where he would care for him in a different way. But that is another story.

Elijah obeyed God even when it was dangerous, and God took care of him from beginning to end — first through the ravens, then through the widow. When the brook dried up, Elijah was not left helpless, because God already knew what to do. God's care can arrive in ways no one expects, even on the wings of a bird.