Gehazi came to push her away. But the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for she is in bitter distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me.”
2 kings 4:27
Elisha was a great man of God. God worked through him in extraordinary ways. But the emphasis here is not on Elisha’s strength and power but on his limitations and weakness.
Notice what Elisha doesn’t know: “She is in bitter distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me” (4:27). He is saying, “God often reveals things to me, but I don’t know what’s going on here.”
However discerning you are, there will be things that the Lord hides from you. You will find yourself saying, “I’m walking with God, but I can’t see the way ahead. I am completely dependent on Him.”
Elisha didn’t know what God was doing. And notice that Elisha’s initiative was unsuccessful. He sent Gehazi to the house at Shunem with the prophet’s staff. “Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life” (4:31).
How easy it is to live on our gifts, to feel that we have what it takes to do the work of God. God sometimes allows His servants to fail so that we will remember that we are utterly dependent on Him.
If that was the experience of a man who walked so closely with God, we should not be surprised if it is our experience as well.
Have you failed in something that you were confident about? How could you use this to help you grow in your dependence on God?
