II Kings Chapters 3-5

3:14 - Elisha only concedes to offer a Word from the Lord because Jehoshaphat, a man of God, is with the armies. He has no respect for Jehoram who still follows the ways of the Baal cult.

3:15 - I find it interesting that Elisha calls for music to be played as he seeks a Word from the Lord. There is power in music and worship, something that speaks deeply to the soul. A powerful musical worship experience on Sunday mornings basically cultivates as prepares my mind and heat for the Word of God I will hear afterwards. (See also: I Samuel 10:5-6 where Saul is overcome by worship to connect with God).

3:27 - This is a really strange turn of events. With nowhere left to turn, the king of Moab sacrfices his own son to the wall of his city. He was probably sacrificing him to the false Moabite god Chemosh. Here is what I think happens next...the Israelites see the sacrifice and freak out. Many of them are God followers, but they also still believe that there are other gods in other countries. I believe that they lose heart because they think that Chemosh is about to start fighting for the Moabites. Ironically, their beliefs are self-fulfilling because when they start to doubt the one and only true God, His wrath is turned against them and they are scattered. So they do lose the battle because of Chemosh, but it is only because of their false belief in the non-exsitant god's exsoitance. Get it? The only God at work in that story is YAHWEH...when they Israelites doubt His power, He forces them to withdraw with a hollow victory.

4:1 - Wow, does this tell alot about the spiritual state of Israel?! The widow of a prophet of God is about to have her children taken into slavery because of her husbands debts...whatever happened to caring for the widows and orphans? We see God's heart for the poor and oppressed as He provides (Through Elisha) for the poor widow. What are some of the ways you feel the Christian Church does not reflect the heart of Jesus Christ today? What can we do to change that?

4:10 - The Shunammmite woman shows great hospitality and respect to Elisha. Part of the reason that she creates the room for him, is so that he will not get to close to the family. I know this sounds weird, but she wants to allow him the psace to remain separate as a holy man. He is set apart as God's voice to the people of Israel and she allows him to be in her house and still set apart. It is very respectful.

4:26 - I find it interesing that she refuses to speak to Gehazi. She wants to go directly to the person she believes is the source of the problem - Elisha. She thinks Elisha has duped her and given her a child, just so it could be taken away from her. The Shunammite woman holds Elisha responsible for his death and she has come to confront him.

4:27 - Even Elisha seems shocked by the turn of events. He says, "I have not heard anything from God about your son dying?" Like the woman, he is confused and surprised. Even the most faithful followers of God do not always know exactly what God is doing through the events in their lives. We have to make sure that even through our pain, dispair, anger, fear, confusion (All of which are perfectly resonable and acceptable to feel) that we maintain our faith and try to remember that even when we don't know what God is doing - He does.

4:31 - What is up with the staff thing? Well, Gehazi can probably move a little more quickly than Elisha and he runs ahead to place the staff over the boy's body as a symbol that Elisha is on his way. It probably also gives Elisha some time to go to God and figure out what he is supposed to do. Always a good idea to take a step back and consult God before making and rash decisions.

4:33 - What is the first thing he does after closing the door. He goes to God in prayer. That is the most powerful thing he could do right there. He has plugged himself into the only true power source in the universe. Laying on the boy is all well and good...he is intercedeing for the boy with God. But the power comes from his humble acknowledgement that God is going to be the one bringing the healing. Intercession is an often neglected form of prayer. When people cannot or will not pray for themselves, we can intercede on their behalf...a humbling and powerful experience that really allows you to put yourself in another persons shoes and cry out for them to God.

4:44 - We see example after example in these chapters - God will provide. Money for the widow. Life for the boy. Food for the prophets. God is in control.

5:7 - The king is a faithless man. Instead of trusting that God will be able to heal Namaan, he throws a fit because he thinks that Namaan is trying to trap him into going to war. The Israelite slave girl who tells Namaan to go to Israel has more faith than the king of Israel - a man who is supposed to be the spiritual leader of the country...that is sick!

5:11 - I like this part...Namaan gets visibly angry because he wanted a big show. He came all the way to Israel, just to have Elisha walk up and say, "Go bath yourself in the Jordan."? He wants pomp and circumstance. He wants singing and dancing and mystical artistry. What he gets is just raw, humble faith in God. This is a good lesson for all of us - God doesn't want the fancy stuff, He doesn't want show...he wants people to simply trust Him, to place their faith in Him.

5:15 - How cool is this? Namaan, a general of Syria, has now become a sold out God follower. God's name will now be made great to anyone Namaan comes in contact with. He also instantly wants to start changing the way he lives his life. It's a beautiful tranformation.