While the harpist was playing, the hand of the Lord came on Elisha and he said, “This is what the Lord says: I will fill this valley with pools of water. For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord….”
2 Kings 3:15b-18 (NIV)

When I was in high school I went on a mission trip with my youth group. Four van loads of high schoolers drove from Des Moines to Acapulco, Mexico. This was no luxury trip. We slept in churches, in strangers’ homes, and in the vans themselves. And, in the middle of a Mexican desert, one of the vans broke down. Our youth pastor chose me and a couple of friends to stay with him and with the broken down van while the rest of the group headed toward the next town to arrange for a tow to come get the van.

There we were in the middle of a desert in Mexico. This is long before the internet or cell phones. We were completely isolated with no means to communicate with anyone. It was July. It was the middle of the afternoon. We had no shade. We had no food. We barely had any water. And, we had no idea how long it was going to take for our friends to arrange for a tow truck or how long it would even take for the tow truck to get to us.

One of the things I’ve observed along my life journey is that there are stretches along the way in which I find myself stuck in a desert. I feel isolated. It’s uncomfortable. I have no idea how long I’m going to be stuck here, and I’m not sure exactly how I’m going to get unstuck.

That’s were the Kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom find themselves in today’s chapter. They were on their way to fight Moab when they find themselves stuck in the desert without water. The armies and their horses are in jeaopardy of dying. So, they call the prophet Elisha. Elisha calls for a harp player. As the harpist is playing, the prophet receives a Word from the Lord.

There will be no rain, but water is coming. Wait for it.

There will be no signs. No clouds gathering on the horizon. No distant rumble of thunder. No wind beginning to blow. No first drops falling on their faces. Nothing they would normally associate with water coming. And yet, water comes.

There is no water. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be water. There are no rain clouds. But that doesn’t mean God isn’t already providing. There is nothing happening within their field of vision. But that doesn’t mean nothing is happening.

In fact, the text tells us that the water eventually comes “from the direction of Edom.” Whatever was happening to produce that water was happening somewhere they couldn’t see it.

I’m always looking for signs. I want some indication that things are moving in the right direction. I want the phone call, the encouraging email, the improving numbers, the open door, the first green shoot pushing through the soil. Give me something, God. Just a little evidence that you’re doing something here.

There are seasons when I look around and everything appears exactly as dry as it did yesterday. The prayer hasn’t been answered. The relationship hasn’t changed. The opportunity hasn’t appeared. The path ahead isn’t any clearer. There isn’t even a cloud on the horizon suggesting that things are about to change.

Today’s chapter reminds me that my horizon is not the boundary of God’s activity. God is at work beyond what I can presently see. That’s not a promise that God will always provide the particular outcome I want. It does, however, remind me of the limitations of my perspective.

Perhaps that’s why Elisha’s statement immediately afterward is so powerful: “This is an easy thing in the eyes of the LORD.” The crisis consuming everyone’s attention isn’t particularly difficult for God.

So, in the quiet this morning I’m reminded not to mistake the absence of visible evidence for the absence of God’s activity.

Which brings me back to the hot Mexican desert. We’d been standing in the sun for a couple of hours. What little water we had was long gone. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable situation. Then, a van appeared on the horizon rolling down that desert highway. Seeing us standing there with our broken down van, it pulled over. It was another midwest youth group on a mission. Once assured that we were okay and help was eventually on the way, they handed us a gallon jug of ice cold orange juice, said they’d pray for us, and headed on their way.

Next time life throws a wicked curve, I think I’ll go to the fridge for a snack, where I’ll be reminded of my God for whom nothing – not even my present circumstances – is too hard to handle.

I’m out tomorrow. Returning on Thursday, Oct 1

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