I was trying a new recipe and had to run to the store to pick up a couple of ingredients I was lacking. After searching through the spices and not finding the elusive white pepper I needed, I asked a young girl stocking shelves for help. Right away she pointed it out and wouldn’t you know, the pepper was right in front of me. It had been staring at me the whole time but I didn’t see it. Sometimes that’s how it is in our spiritual lives. We look at things through our eyes instead of God’s and miss what is staring right at us. That’s what happened to the servant of Elisha. He was surrounded by the Lord’s mighty warriors yet couldn’t see them.
When the king of Aram found out that the prophet Elisha was informing the Israelite army of his every move, he sent a great army of his own to surround the city of Dothan where Elisha and his servant were staying. Filled with despair the servant asked Elisha, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” Elisha answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” (vs. 6:15-16) Can you imagine what went through the mind of that terrified servant? He must have thought his master was crazy. The two of them certainly didn’t outnumber the great many soldiers they faced. But in fact Elisha wasn’t crazy. He was looking through eyes of faith and saw what God saw. And so he prayed to the Lord that his servant too would see as he did. “O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see. And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (v. 17)
How many times are we like the servant of Elisha? Often when we look at the troubles facing us, our first response is worry and despair. We fail to see past our problems to what God sees. And what He sees is victory that comes only from trusting in Him. From trusting in His power, protection, and provision. He will always provide the resources we need to get through any challenge. “Sometimes God's resources will enable us to emerge on top. Or He will enable us to survive the onslaught. And sometimes God will simply give us strength to maintain a Christlike spirit in the midst of abuse and ill-treatment at the hands of others.”(Dennis Bratcher) Elisha prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened, and we too need to pray for open eyes of faith. Faith allows us to rest in the knowledge that even if we can’t see them, we are surrounded by a mountain full of horses and chariots of fire.
Whose eyes are you looking through? Are they the eyes of a fearful servant, or the eyes of an all powerful God? Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians was this, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” (Eph. 1:18) Paul wanted them, and us, to see things as God does. To have Godly vision. To have unwavering belief that God loves us and is always fighting for us. Psalm 34:7 promises, “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.” We know that God always fulfills His promises, so the next time you feel like crying “Alas!”, remember that those who are with us are greater than those who are with them!
“O Lord, open my eyes that I may see forces that You have assembled on the hillsides of my life. I trust in your strength and provision.”...iworship Bible
