Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Elisha had told the woman whose son
he had brought back to life, “Take your family and move to some other place,
for the Lord has called for a famine on Israel that will last for
seven years.” So the woman did as the man of God
instructed. She took her family and
settled in the land of the Philistines for seven years. After the famine ended she returned from
the land of the Philistines, and she went to see the king about getting back
her house and land. As she came in, the king was talking
with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God. The king had just said, “Tell me some stories
about the great things Elisha has done.” And Gehazi was
telling the king about the time Elisha had brought a boy back to life. At that very moment, the mother of the boy
walked in to make her appeal to the king about her house and land. “Look, my lord the king!” Gehazi exclaimed. “Here is the woman now, and this is her
son—the very one Elisha brought back to life!” “Is this true?” the king asked her. And she told him the story. So he directed one of his officials to see
that everything she had lost was restored to her, including the value of any
crops that had been harvested during her absence. 2 Kings 8:1-6
When it comes to miracles, we usually want what the king wanted, stories
of the great things. Often
(too often) we camp on the miracle event.
God told Elisha to lay face down on the dead son of the Shunamite woman
to bring life back into the child[1]. In lingering on the grand
miracle we miss the aftermath of God’s tender care for His faithful.
In the case of the Shunamite woman and her family, Elisha warned her of
the coming famine, and their lives were preserved. And when they came back, God’s timing had the
king longing for stories of the great times of the past. Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, just happened to be
there to tell the story of the woman’s son being restored, when she walked into
the king’s presence.
In dramatic fashion the Hallmark movie ending unfolds as Gehazi tells the
king the walking, breathing, returning evidence of the miracle was standing in
front of the throne. The king hears the
woman’s story and restores all her property.
It was a seven-year road back home, but God provided every need.
Enter the long road home of the 21st century occupants of
planet earth. Do you recall the old
saying about how sometimes it is hard to see the forest for the trees? It is when you’re so surrounded by a problem even
the idea of hope, that glimmering ray of sunshine in a dark place pointing to a
better day, is nowhere to be found.
I’m beginning to believe that principle has had its way with humanity during
this pandemic crisis. Like the king we
long for the good ol’ days and great endings to stories of past victories. We want something to give us hope, but the
darkness has been lingering too long.
When the pandemic began it was unthinkably surreal to imagine it would
be around longer than a flu season…six months at the most. Now we’re entering the second year of this
crisis. It seems the first time we put on masks and started having church online
was three lifetimes ago. (Remember, time
only passes quickly when it’s fun!) The
familiar strains of Revelation and apocalypse are playing against the backdrop
of saints under the altar crying, how long, O Lord?
If perspective means anything, the Shunamite woman and her family, post-miracle
raising of the dead child, were on the road for seven years. When they came home, they had to appeal to
the king to even have a hope of life getting back to normal.
Now, I’m not saying we’ve got another half-dozen years to go with
COVID-19 and its mutant cousins, but it could be. And if it is, to wallow (as the king) wishing
for a return of better days, ruminating on just how good it used to be, is
failing to see what God is offering us in this forest of opportunity.
So, what is the opportunity? It
is the invitation for a generation that has been walking in great darkness to
regain faith.
Let me say this in a painfully-blunt, but clear way (in case you’ve
been living on another planet), the effects of this pandemic death
counter, cast against the backdrop of political pandemic, has all but destroyed
the soul of America. We have
been like the Shunamite’s child, relegated to the darkness of the sickroom,
expiring. And the church has been
lifelessly sidestepping the famine of faith.
The time to walk in fear must come to an end. It’s time for the church to come home. It may be a long walk, but God has always
provided, and the words of Isaiah’s prophecy remind us that we’ll get what we
need as we step out:
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
For You Today
You
chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!
[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©
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