Surprise! Here in Israel, we can’t get doughnuts all year round. “Sufganiyot” (the Israeli equivalent for doughnuts) appear in bakeries in November, and stay around only through Hanukkah and the end of December.
As a multicultural family, it seems there is always some holiday we are working towards or recovering from. We recently celebrated Sigd, the Ethiopian-Jewish holiday of thanksgiving to God for bringing us home to Israel. Then, suddenly, doughnuts were everywhere―mainly the classic Israeli red-jelly-filled, sugar-frosted ones, but also versions with chocolate, caramel and nougat fillings, covered with decadent frostings.
So, what’s the deal with all the oil-fried treats that only appear here for a few months out of the year? During Chanukah, fried foods are eaten to commemorate the small bottle of oil that the Maccabees found in the temple when they cleansed and rededicated it, which lasted a miraculous eight days until more oil could be brought to keep the everlasting light lit.
For being such a huge, powerful, sovereign Creator of the Universe, it sure seems that God cares an awful lot about the tiny, insignificant things – amounts of money, oil, talents, etc.
A small amount of oil proving to be a big deal appears in a few places in the scriptures. In I Kings 17, God directs Elijah the prophet to a widow from Zeraphath, whose small amount of oil is multiplied. Matthew 25 tells the parable of the ten virgins: five had a small quantity of oil for their lamps, and five did not.
In one story, the oil represents provision and, in the other, preparation.
True confession: I have always felt sorry for the five unprepared virgins, understanding their forgetfulness and feeling sad that they missed out and failed due to their haphazardness, a characteristic to which I can readily relate. Recently, we have studied the parable in our congregation and continued deeper in our women’s group. Coming to a better understanding, I am encouraged that even as a non-type-A personality, I can prepare myself. The virgins who didn’t have oil asked to borrow from their friends, but their friends told them to go and get some for themselves. This small bit of oil is something we have to seek on our own. Psalm 81:10 says, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt: open wide your mouth, and I will fill it.” It’s not a complicated process, merely an act of personal initiative to bring an empty jar and have it filled. When we bring our emptiness before Him, He is faithful to fill us.
Likewise, the jar of oil in the story of Hanukkah had a small amount that was enough, by God’s grace. In a recent post-service congregational Zoom call, we heard a testimony and exhortation from a dear brother in the congregation. He and his wife are doing what small acts of service that they can, to encourage others. In doing so, they are able to rejoice despite frustrations and difficulties. He encouraged all of us to not despise the small things we can do or are prompted to do, because God uses the small things and miraculously multiplies them to provide enough.
The next time you indulge in a doughnut or any other oil-fried delight, think about those small jars of oil. Remember God’s provision and faithfulness when we bring before Him our little, and even our emptiness for Him to fill.
