2 Kings 4:8-36 tells the story of a woman from Shunem and Elisha the prophet. Elisha passed through her town often, and the woman and her husband made a room for him to stay in. Elisha wants to do something for her in return for her kindness, but she replies that she is not in need of anything. However, she doesn’t have any children. So Elisha tells her she will have a son the following year, and she does.
Years later, the child is with his father in the field when he becomes ill. The father has a servant carry the child to his mother. The mother takes the child and holds him, but he dies. She takes the child to Elisha’s room and leaves him on the bed. She sends a message to her husband about needing to go and see Elisha, but doesn’t mention that the child has died.
Then she heads out to find Elisha. When she gets to the place where Elisha is, he sees her in the distance. He sends his servant, Gehazi, to go to her and see what is wrong. She tells Gehazi that everything is fine and continues to go to Elisha. But when she gets to Elisha, she falls on the ground in great distress. Elisha immediately sends Gehazi to go to where the child is and pray for him.
Verse 30: “But the boy’s mother said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives and you yourself live, I won’t go home unless you go with me.’” The Shunammite woman took her problem to the one person she knew that could handle it. Elisha returned with her and raised the boy from the dead.
This story prompts a question to us: who do we turn to when we are in trouble? What is the first thing that runs through your mind? Is it to phone a friend or family member? Or do we go to the One who can actually do something? There is nothing wrong with sharing our troubles with our family, friends, the prayer team, or a pastor. However, we have been granted access to the Father and He is the one who can give us peace, strength, and hope to endure every situation.
Ephesians 2:18: “Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.”
He is our source and He’s waiting for us to come to Him in every situation. I would encourage you to practice going to Him first when we encounter minor obstacles, so when we find ourselves in the middle of a major storm, we can access Him and the peace and hope He, and only He, can grant us.