Embark on an in-depth total immersion learning experience as we walk with God through Scripture and other corroborating Ancient Sacred Writings to get to know Him.
"Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."
The Complete Jewish Study Bible reads this way: Verse 28 "Come to Me, all of you who are struggling and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Verse 30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
No one carries a yoke alone, so if we are struggling, weary, and burdened, perhaps we are in company with the wrong yoke-partner.
Get in the yoke with Jesus, Whose burden is light, who teaches us gently, and Who gives us times of rest and rejuvenation, for He knows our humanity.
Mark 6:31-38 [Complete Jewish Study Bible]
31 "There were so many people coming and going that they couldn't even take time to eat, so He [Yeshua] said to them, ' Come with Me by yourselves to a place where we can be alone, and you can get some rest.'
32 They went off by themselves to an isolated spot;
33 but many people, seeing them leave and recognizing them, ran ahead on foot from all the towns and got there first.
34 When Yeshua came ashore, He saw a huge crowd. Filled with compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd, He began teaching them many things.
35 By this time the hour was late. The talmidim came to Him and said, 'This place is a remote place, and it's getting late.
36 Send the people away, so that they can go and buy food for themselves in the farms and towns around here.'
37 But He answered them, 'Give them something to eat, yourselves! They replied 'We are to go and spend thousands on bread, and give it to them to eat?'
38 He asked them, 'How many loaves do you have? Go and check.' When they had found out, they said, 'Five. And two fish.'
And if you have read the account, you will know that Jesus multiplied the fish and the loaves, removing the burden of planning an event to feed a hungry and enormous crowd, and they gathered up twelve basket-fulls of left overs, after feeding more than five thousand people an all-you-can-eat buffet.
Then Jesus tells the disciples to go on ahead of Him in a boat, and while He is resting in the presence of His Father, He sees them struggling to row the boat in the storm, around four o'clock in the morning. He did not continue to pray, and enjoy the time spent with His Father, and send the word and rebuke the wind. He got up, walked on the water -- a man, filled with the Holy Spirit, walked on the water in a hurricane, and would have kept on going had they not invited Him into their yoke...or, perhaps I should rephrase that and say, that they asked to get into His yoke with Him, by inviting Him into their boat.
On the Road to Emmaus, Simon and Cleopas, grieved from seeing Jesus crucified, and feeling hopeless about the future of their nation, spoke with a total stranger, Who stopped what He was doing, and walked with them all the way home, teaching them. He even made like He was going to keep going, until they invited Him into their yoke...and He invited them into His.
They recognized Who this stranger was as soon as He broke the bread and gave thanks, because they had seen Someone do this before.
Empowered and filled with joy, (for the Joy of the Lord is our Strength to eat and celebrate with Him in His Yoke), they ran all the way back to Jerusalem, to the eleven Disciples, and told them that they had seen Jesus. He had truly been raised from the dead, just as they had been told by the women who saw Him.
Jesus is still alive. He still wants you to invite Him in so that He can share His yoke with you.
John 6:37-38
37 "Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will certainly not turn away.
38 For I have come down from heaven to do not My Own will, but the will of the One Who sent Me.
39 And this is the will of the One Who sent Me: that I should not lose any of all those He has given Me but should raise them up on the Last Day.
40 Yes, this is the will of My Father: that all who see the Son and trust in Him should have eternal life, and that I should raise then up on the Last Day."
Who can See God?
Matthew 5:7
"How blessed are the pure in heart! for they will see God."
King David prays, in Psalm 51:10 "Create in me a clean heart, God; renew in me a resolute spirit."
And again, in Psalm 73:1 "How good God is to Israel, to those who are pure in heart!"
Encouragement:
In all you do, with purity of heart, with gentleness and humility of soul, be at rest in His Mighty Hand today, and stay with Jesus, in His yoke, which is not an unbalanced yoke.
Enjoy the journey He has for you. He will equip and empower you for His Glory, and Kingdom purpose.
I believe we can See God in His Word, for the Apostle Peter -- who was on the Mountain with Christ, said, We have this more sure word -- not only hanging onto what he had seen, but even more so, what he had read.
We can know Him from all the ways He reveals Himself to us through Scripture. With a pure heart we receive the word into a loving and receptive heart, and produce a harvest of good fruit, which becomes nourishment to the nations, because we believe Him, taking His Promises as real and certain, the unbreakable, and creative truth that only He can speak -- and sometimes He speaks it through the pure of heart, who are in yoke and in agreement with Him, so that His will can be manifested in the earth. Glory to God in the Highest.
In the past couple of weeks, Apostle Tim Sheets has been speaking about a time of Divinely orchestrated Breakthroughs. He and several others Pastors recently prayed together and realized that they all had received revelation on the same things, around the same time. They then understood that God was confirming His Word to them.
It was also noted that, at the time of 11:09. a.m. , during the Church Service on a previous week, there was a rare earthquake only about ten minutes from where Tim Sheets has his Church.
The conversation then progressed to the 10 reasons for earthquakes, as to Spiritual signs, and wonders, and why God may use them. Ample examples from Scripture were given.
It is in this context that I share this information from a Geologist, regarding the earthquake that occurred on September 10, a few hours after Charlie Kirk went home to be with Jesus.
The geologist explains why it is so strange, and how significant it is that the epicenter was 68 km deep, which is below the earth's crust and in the upper mantle. The movement of the rocks as if to try to climb on top of one another to obtain the same space [the kind of earthquake which occurred], rather than the earth being cracked open, is also interesting.
I also find it interesting, and not so coincidental, that this occurred only a few miles away from the last one which was beneath the earth's crust in that same region.
On the evening of September 9, 2025, I had an open vision which began with seeing a Great War in heaven. A multitude of beings actively fighting one another, weapons clashing, and a great conflagration was occurring. Then I saw what was occurring in the Earth realm below, in what I believed to be Burma. It may have been Nepal, given the action in Nepal at the same time. But I saw a signet ring, a man's gold ring with a large ruby in it, which I believe to be a Burmese Ruby.
Curiously, the soldiers, unlike in Nepal, were dressed in rags and carrying what looked like handles which once belonged to spades, or rakes -- farming implements anyway -- but they were running into battle with these old and weathered sticks, using them as fishing rods. I asked the Lord "fishing rods?"
The interpretation of that was given within minutes, that they were running into this battle on earth, simultaneously as the battle raged in the heavenlies, ill equipped, and utterly incapable of victory.
What God was showing me was not an actual battle, but these who are "fishers of men" as Jesus described the Disciples, were not yet equipped for what was coming, and God is calling us to learn Heaven's strategy for the battles ahead.
The Scripture about turning swords into plowshares, comes to mind. The crossing over of metaphors is not unheard of in Scripture. God uses what we understand. The farming implement which might at one time have been a sword, under the Law, was now used as a fishing pole, to evangelize, but it was not enough to win the spiritual war.
When Elijah was on his journey, the Lord appeared to him, and God said He wasn't in the wind, the fire, or the earthquake, but in the still small voice. But the Apostle Paul speaks of the whole creation groaning:
Romans 8:20-25
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope;
21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.
23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.
24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
I imagine that Tim Sheets may be aware of this already, but I share it here so that we can be encouraged that God knows, and He orchestrates all things for good.
Perhaps his own experience was the "burning bush" experience to see if he would turn aside and notice it, so that God could reveal this one which occurred in Utah?
It is, in my opinion a clarion call for us to pay attention to what God is saying about the state of the Earth. In the Book of Isaiah, God speaks directly to the Earth, and the mountains, the hills, the islands of the sea and the coastlands, and all of His creation, to hear His voice. "Be still and know that I am God!"
I share the video, and then will make a few more comments afterwards.
I removed his video because after posting it here, the video was disabled for embedding.
A couple of nights ago, I was sitting with a family member. Suddenly I became aware of angelic beings in the room, but different than normal. God told me they were the Ophanim.
The only place which describes them at length other than in Ezekiel 1, where they are called the Wheels within the Wheels, is The Hebrew Book of Enoch, the vision recorded by Rabbi Ishmael Ben Elisha, [link to Chabad.org for more details on his life], who was one of the ten Rabbis who were martyred for their faith.
Rabbi Ishmael describes heaven in greater detail than anyone else has done, including all the ranks to the angels, and their names, and functions. It is a fascinating ancient document, translated by Hugo Odeberg, Phd, London, Cambridge University Press, 1928.
I give the context because I began to read the area where he speaks of the Ophanim, [Page 294] and the surrounding descriptions of the Cherubim, and Seraphim, which are usually mentioned together.
He describes how each angelic company cares for one another, and honors one another, which is diametrically opposite to what the demonic forces do. He names the Prince of Persia, and a few others, who are opposed to all God does..
But back the Ophanim: When the Lord said, that they were in the room I asked what the meaning of this was. I was told, a few minutes later, and I wrote it down so now I will quote it from my journal:
September 11, 2025, 7 p.m.
"I saw the OPhanim in the room and God said: I am taking you into new territory and you will need an escort. That is why the Ophanim are here."
Putting a few things together, including the vision of the war in heaven on September 10, and the vision of the ill-equipped fighting men, I find it necessary to ask for understanding of the next step in the journey.
When I read the words of Enoch, himself, and the Rabbi, I see that they were escorted into the heavily realms, and taught the ways of God, even as was Moses, who was given the Torah, and the understanding of Creation, and that which was to come, recorded in some Apocryphal writings.
In 1996-97 tie frame, I was taken up into heaven on many occasions, and it was during that time that I received the Life Walk Lessons which I have since revised and shared here, with the new information gained while studying un-Canonized Literature of the Old Testament, and of the Early Church. I was with Jesus, and met our Father, and experienced the wonders of heaven, which I will not share at the moment, as they are not relevant to the subject.
The only reason I mention it is that I did not receive an escort at the time. Jesus took me everywhere I went. The Ophanim are part of the Throne and its Living Creatures, etc, which are always with God as He travels.
If you decide to read the account, you will find yourself undone by the Glory and Majesty of God and all that is in heaven. When I finished reading it, I couldn't help but weep for the joy of knowing the Greatness of God, even more than I did. And He left all that, and came here to be with us, teach us, die for our sins, and be resurrected so that we could come boldly before the Throne of God and ask for anything.
My Journal comes with daily Scriptures written on each page. Today it was James 1:5. The Brother of Jesus, James, writes that we can ask for wisdom. God gives us wisdom, but should we need more, He does not get upset because we have asked for more. That was impacting to me today, as sometimes I feel like I need just a little more help to understand some things. I am sure I am not alone. But God is faithful, and always answers our every need with more than we could ask, or think to imagine.
In the section where Rabbi Ishmael describes the Seraphim, I am particularly amazed by their function. He describes the devil, the accuser of the brethren, consistently accusing the People of Israel, before God. They take his accusations and throw them in the fire to be utterly burned up before God sees them. I think that's got to be one of the coolest jobs in heaven!
I said all that to say, the battle is the Lord's and He is victorious, and when He shares things He is doing with us, it is so that we can share in the Glory Jesus gives us. And sometimes, we are taken into the heavenlies to wage a spiritual war along side Him, so that principalities, powers, thrones, etc., will be de-throned from their position, and sent back to dry places.
In so doing, however, there must be an out-pouring of His Holy Spirit to fill the gap left by vacating evil spirits, so that regions may begin to be occupied by the Holy Spirit, and Kingdom principles.
We are seated with Him in heavily places. Recently I heard Roberts Liardon prophecy at the Opening the Heavens Conference, that we must "come back from outer space" and do something in the earth. I have been in the process of making videos which take place in heavenly places, in the form of a children's type story, which includes my crocheted creations. I understood that as a confirmation from God, Who had already hinted that I should do some from earth as well. [Yarn Inspired] My next Episode will take place on earth, after they have returned from "Space Camp".
I do comment, however, that because we are seated in heavenly places, we can do good in the earth, because God equips us for our purpose. But I agree, we must be in both simultaneously, or we will become unbalanced.
As you may have guessed, the reason for asking for extra wisdom, is that the Ophanim are inseparable from the Throne of God, and go everywhere with Him, already. The fact that He was in the room with me speaks to the fact that all that goes with Him is always with Him when He is here. That I already know, but became more aware of at the time.
However, as I still do not yet know why the Ophanim were highlighted specifically, except perhaps to have me look it up again, and find the copy of the document on archive.org in it's original translated form -- that I can understand. [I only had a typed copy, not the original Book form, in PDF. ]
I pray for the wisdom to know and understand the meaning of "new territory" and the reason for the need to be escorted, other than being taken Home to be with the Lord. I say it here before witnesses, so that perhaps the answer that will be given will be for the edification of the Body of Christ.
Hymn of Heaven: Hebrew, Arabic, English; Joshua Aaron, Nizar Francis, Rebekah Davis
[Translations to Lyrics available in the YouTube Description box.]
Life Walk Lesson 110: 12 Keys to Effective Prayer
Audio Version
Originally Written: January 25, 2024
We are learning to be effective in prayer by praying according to the Word, and will, of God, and I am using the Amplified Classic Translation of the Holy Bible to obtain the fullest meaning of the Scriptures.
Matthew 16:19 declares, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind (declare to be improper and unlawful) on earth must be what is already bound in heaven; and whatever you loose (declare lawful) on earth must be what is already loosed in heaven.”
Today, we will learn about the value of Persistent Prayer
In the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, chapters 7-9, God has a conversation with the Prophet Jeremiah — Jeremiah prays, and God answers. God speaks from His heart, and Jeremiah responds. God did the same thing with the Prophet Isaiah.
In these chapters God and Jeremiah are sharing their experiences for our benefit so that we can get to know how God walks with others. Then we can know what to expect when we ask Him for intervention in our circumstances.
KEY: The goal of prayer is conversation with God.
The Apostle Paul teaches us to pray without ceasing — always talking with God about everything, all the time, everyday — like you would when you get together with the person or people you love being with.
Jesus was tested in every area, the same as we are, so that He would know what it is like to be us. He knows when we go through things that are difficult — that we need God’s help, and sometimes we don’t even know how to ask, or what to ask.
After all, God has watched people for several millennia, and His own heart breaks for the situations humanity finds itself in, often cyclically because the devil has no new tricks. But God has never left us. God always helps those who ask.
Let’s see how God felt in Jeremiah 9:1-3, where it is written:
1. “Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
2 Oh, that I had in the wilderness a lodging place for travelers; that I might leave my people, and go from them! For they are all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men.
3 “And like their bow they have bent their tongues for lies. They are not valiant for the truth on the earth. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know Me,” says the Lord.”
Yes, God was having a moment!
KEY: Jesus often got away from the masses of people to pray to His Father in heaven, setting the example for us to follow also.
I include the passage in Jeremiah 9, because I believe the Lord was remembering the gift of the Shunammite woman to the prophet Elisha when he needed a place to stay while traveling.
When God came to earth, He walked with those who were faithful, and stayed with them, just as He promises to do for us. In John 14:23, Jesus says, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
But when I first read that verse in Jeremiah 9, where God wanted a place to get away from His people, it reminded me of what Jesus said — that the Son of Man had no place to lay His head. Even from before He was born, there was no room for Him in the Inn.
It made me cry, and I wanted to open a Bed and Breakfast or Country Inn. Well God had other plans for my life, and that’s okay too. But it was my way of saying, as a baby Christian, Lord, You are welcome to stay at my house. God knew my heart and that I wouldn’t have been very good at being an Innkeeper anyway, so He gave me the good desires of my heart instead.
So What does Persistent Faith Look like to God?
KEY: Persistent faith takes the time it takes to persist until the answer comes. Never give up!
Jesus told a story so that people could understand what persistent faith looked like to God.
Luke 18:1:1-8
“Also [Jesus] told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not to turn coward (faint, lose heart, and give up).
2 He said, In a certain city there was a judge who neither reverenced and feared God nor respected or considered man.
3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Protect and defend and give me justice against my adversary.
4 And for a time he would not; but later he said to himself, Though I have neither reverence or fear for God nor respect or consideration for man,
5 Yet because this widow continues to bother me, I will defend and protect and avenge her, lest she give me intolerable annoyance and wear me out by her continual coming or at the last she come and rail on me or assault me or strangle me.
6 Then the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says!
7 And will not [our just] God defend and protect and avenge His elect (His chosen ones), who cry to Him day and night? Will He defer them and delay help on their behalf?
8 I tell you, He will defend and protect and avenge them speedily. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find [persistence in] faith on the earth?
In Luke 17:5, we find the disciples asking Jesus to increase their faith. And Jesus answered them in verse 6, “…If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you.’”
KEY: God promises to answer prayer before we even ask, because He knows our need already and is able to orchestrate events to bring about the desire of our heart, even before we know it.
In Psalm 139:4, the Psalmist prays, “Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it all.”
And Isaiah 65:24 says, “It will also come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”
When God Answers Unspoken Prayers
Let’s look at what God did for a woman in ancient times, who also lived during a time when people could not be trusted, just as we read earlier in the Book of Jeremiah.
In 2 Kings 4:8-37 we meet a Shunammite Woman. Shunem was a small village located near the Jezreel Valley, north of Mount Gilboa, in the possession of the Tribe of Issachar., according to Joshua 19:18.
Beginning in verse 8…
8 “One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a rich and influential woman lived, who insisted on his eating a meal. Afterward, whenever he passed by, he stopped there for a meal.
9 She said to her husband, “Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God passing by us continually.
10 Please, let us make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.”
11 One day he came there and turned in to the upper chamber and rested.
12 Then he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” And when he had called her, she stood before him.
13 He said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have been careful for us with all this care; what can I do for you?Would you be spoken for to the king or to the captain of the army?’” And she answered, “I live among my own people.”
The prophet new already, by revelation of the Holy Spirit, that she would need an advocate with the King before she even knew it, but we will get to that in a few moments.
Continuing on in verse 14…
14 So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi answered, “Truly she has no son and her husband is old.”
Here we see that God also knows the desire of our heart, even when it is too hard to say it out loud because we don’t have it yet. Elisha and Gehazi had clearly spent enough time with this precious woman and her husband, to have observed the desire of her heart, and articulated it for her.
Let’s continue:
15 He said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the doorway.
16 Then he said, “At this season next year you will embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God, do not lie to your maidservant.”
Let’s grow our faith a little right here. How many times have we desired something and felt it was completely out of reach, or felt hopeless that it would ever materialize? I believe everyone has experienced this at some point in their lives. But look what God did for her because of her generosity — which is one of the results of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
17 The woman conceived and bore a son at that season the next year, as Elisha had said to her.”
The story doesn’t end here, however. The Shunammite woman would encounter God once again, but his time she had greater faith than before.
Let’s continue:
18 “When the child was grown, the day came that he went out to his father to the reapers.
19 He said to his father, “My head, my head.” And he said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.”
20 When he had taken him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her lap until noon, and then died.
21 She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door behind him and went out.
22 Then she called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God and return.”
23 He said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither new moon nor sabbath.” And she said, “It will be well.”
24 Then she saddled a donkey and said to her servant, “Drive and go forward; do not slow down the pace for me unless I tell you.”
25 So she went and came to the man of God to Mount Carmel.
“When the man of God saw her at a distance, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Behold, there is the Shunammite.
26 Please run now to meet her and say to her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?’” And she answered, “It is well.”
27 When she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came near to push her away; but the man of God said, “Let her alone, for her soul is troubled within her; and the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me.”
28 Then she said, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, ‘Do not deceive me’?”
And here, let me take a moment to remind us that there is great grace during times of grief, when we have that “little faith” — because things aren’t as they are supposed to be.
KEY: God does understand our frailty, and helps us become strong in faith again.
2 Timothy 2:13 encourages us in our moments of faithlessness:
“If we are faithless [do not believe and are untrue to Him], He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself.”
We can also recognize her spiritual warfare in this moment, and as we will see, she still had great faith to believe that the man of God could do something for her and her son.
KEY: Our goal is unwavering faith, and that grows by experiencing God’s faithfulness.
Let’s continue:
29 “Then he said to Gehazi, “Gird up your loins and take my staff in your hand, and go your way; if you meet any man, do not salute him, and if anyone salutes you, do not answer him; and lay my staff on the lad’s face.”
I learn from this also, that it is so important to remain focused on the commission given by God — to accomplish it without entertaining distractions, especially in life an death situations were absolute obedience to God’s instructions is imperative.
KEY: Always obey God, and obey quickly.
Continuing:
30 “The mother of the lad said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” And he arose and followed her.”
And here we have a prime example of her persistent faith again!
KEY: The tenacity required at times to hold onto a promise, irregardless of the seeming impossibility of it, is God-given, for Romans 12:3 says we have all been given a measure of faith.
Let’s continue:
31 “Then Gehazi passed on before them and laid the staff on the lad’s face, but there was no sound or response. So he returned to meet him and told him, “The lad has not awakened.”
I learn from this that sometimes it is inappropriate to delegate. Someone else cannot fill in for us when we have been anointed to do something. Even if they can get there first, because they can run faster, it is still ours to do and God does not take our commission away from us just because someone else can get their faster, or has more ability than we do in some way. That’s encouraging to me!
Let’s continue:
32 “When Elisha came into the house, behold the lad was dead and laid on his bed.
33 So he entered and shut the door behind them both and prayed to the Lord.
34 And he went up and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth and his eyes on his eyes and his hands on his hands, and he stretched himself on him; and the flesh of the child became warm.
35 Then he returned and walked in the house once back and forth, and went up and stretched himself on him; and the lad sneezed seven times and the lad opened his eyes.
I learn something from this sequence of events — Elisha’s evaluation of the circumstance included saying that the child was dead. There was no question here about the circumstance he was dealing with. He acknowledged the death of the child. That was the reality in that moment.
Elisha shut everyone else out, and then prayed. We also see that the prophet’s staff didn’t work, praying once didn’t work, walking around praying didn’t work — Elisha had to literally get on top of the situation, and remain absolutely focused, and not give up until change occurred.
KEY: Never give up! Have faith in God, no matter what it looks like.
36 “He called Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. And when she came in to him, he said, “Take up your son.”
37 Then she went in and fell at his feet and bowed herself to the ground, and she took up her son and went out.”
God Never Abandons the Faithful
Now, let’s look at a passage of Scripture in 2Kings 8:1-6 where God orchestrated the events to come in her favor, even through the hardships to come.
“Now Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, “Arise and go with your household, and sojourn wherever you can sojourn; for the Lord has called for a famine, and it will even come on the land for seven years.”
It is interesting to me that the death and resurrection of her son occurred during a time of a coming famine. Scholars say that the son probably suffered heat stroke while out in the field with his father. Lack of water and high temperatures are detrimental to people working hard in soil that is unyielding, but God provides a solution to save them.
Just as a side note, from Matthew 13, the Parable of the Sower tells us, by metaphor, that a loving and receptive heart is the good soil that produces an hundredfold. So a loving and receptive heart, because of the indwelling Holy Spirit, can produce love, joy, peace, etc., etc. [Galatians 5:22-23]
And according to John 10:10, Jesus came to give us life, and that life even more abundantly. So, whether the need is physical or spiritual, God has the answer to the unspoken prayers in our heart.
Let’s continue:
“So the woman arose and did according to the word of the man of God, and she went with her household and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.”
So this would be like someone today moving from the region of the Sea of Galilee, in northern Israel, to the area of modern-day Gaza, in the far south, for seven years. Just as Jacob and his family had to go to Egypt to escape the famine, and Jesus and His family had to go there to escape certain death, this woman was also sent into enemy territory for a while. Even David says, in Psalm 23:5
5 “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my [brimming] cup runs over.”
Let’s continue in verse 2 of 2 Kings 8.
“At the end of seven years, the woman returned from the land of the Philistines; and she went out to appeal to the king for her house and for her field.
Now the king was talking with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please relate to me all the great things that Elisha has done.”
As he was relating to the king how he had restored to life the one who was dead, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to life appealed to the king for her house and for her field. And Gehazi said, “My lord, O king, this is the woman and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.”
Remember we saw that earlier, where Elisha knew, by the Holy Spirit, that she would need an advocate?
KEY: The Holy Spirit is our advocate and prays according to God’s will for us, even when we don’t know how to pray.
“When the king asked the woman, she related it to him. So the king appointed for her a certain officer, saying, “Restore all that was hers and all the produce of the field from the day that she left the land even until now.”
God restored not only her land but all the produce that had been gathered for seven years! I can surmise that she was not growing lettuce or carrots, but perhaps grain which would have lasted a long time in a silo. Either way, whatever it was, it was an absolute miracle to have everything that was lost during the famine returned to her family.
KEY: Even if we have lost everything, God can restore it all and even double, as He did for Job.
If we have lost health and well being, God can restore it completely. If we have lost reputation, God can restore it. If we have lost relationship with God, family, or friends, God can restore relationship. If we have lost anything that we value or care about, God can restore it. Entrust everything to God and He will keep it safe for you.
Encouragement:
Isaiah 58:11-12
11 “And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and in dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.
12 And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of [buildings that have laid waste for] many generations; and you shall be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.”
In Christ all things can be repaired, and restored, for it is written, “the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.” [Luke 19:10]
KEY: No matter how long it has been since we prayed, when we pray and ask God to help us, He hears and answers and orchestrates the best outcomes for all concerned, because it isn’t just about us. He always answers. Just trust Him with the timing and the method. His ways will always have the best outcomes.
Be blessed to be a blessing, with the unique gifting that God has given you to help others live well, and experience God in their lives through you.
