And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
2 Kings 6:17 (NIV)

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I had a chance to speak at my alma mater last week. During my all too brief visit, I found myself in multiple conversations with students. I shared in my message that in my own life journey, I had made assumptions about what “I thought” life looked like and how “I thought” God was working (or not). Certain students wanted to talk about that because I had challenged some of their own assumptions.

In those conversations, I came to realize that there were certain things that the individual I was talking with just couldn’t see. Their head and heart were bound by their own thoughts, assumptions, views, and experience. I’ve observed along my life journey that some spiritual truths are only revealed by challenges that I myself must walk through.

Today’s chapter holds a great example. It’s one of my favorite stories in the entire Great Story.

Even after the Lord, through Elisha, heals the commander of the Aramean army in yesterday’s chapter, the Arameans go to war with Israel. Through Elisha, the army of Israel repeatedly evades the enemy. Finally, the King of Aram learns that Elisha is the one tipping off Israel so they can escape. So, the King sends his army to capture Elisha. Elisha and his servant find themselves surrounded. His servant understandably freaks out in fear. Elisha isn’t worried. His servant asks the prophet why he’s not freaking out, too.

“There are more with us than against us,” Elisha replies.

“Are freakin’ nuts?” his servant retorts, pointing to the Aramean army surrounding them, “DUDE! LOOK AROUND YOU!”

Then Elisha prays that his servant’s eyes would be opened to see. Suddenly, his servant is able to see — not just the temporal realm, but the spiritual realm as well. What he sees is an army of angels on chariots of fire. But that’s not the end of this remarkable episode.

While Elisha’s servant has his eyes opened, the Aramean army is blinded. They find themselves Israel’s prisoners. Instead of killing them, Elisha throws his enemies a feast. He blesses them, and sends them on their way. The result? “The bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory.”

I must honestly confess that most of my life, I’ve lived like Elisha’s servant. I wake up. I look out the window. Immediately, I begin counting.

That problem.
That bill.
That diagnosis.
That conflict.
That thing happening with one of the kids.
That uncertain future.
That loss.
That impossible decision.

I count everything surrounding me and reach the perfectly rational conclusion: “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” And, more often than not, God’s answer isn’t always to remove what’s surrounding me. I couldn’t help notice that the Aramean army doesn’t disappear when the servant’s eyes are opened. God simply allows him to see what else is there.

The circumstances haven’t changed. His perception of the circumstances has.

And I’ve learned along life’s road that this is one of the most important functions of spiritual disciplines—Scripture, prayer, worship, community, silence, remembrance. They don’t magically erase what’s outside the window. They train the eyes of my heart to perceive realities that fear makes me forget.

God is here.
God is working.
God has resources I cannot see.
God’s purposes are larger than this moment.

What I can see is real—but it isn’t all that is real. And that pushes me one important step further. Once my eyes are opened, I begin seeing even my enemies differently too. The person I want defeated might be someone God wants me to feed. The person I have categorized as the problem might become the object of unexpected grace.

So, in the quiet this morning, I find two prayers buried inside the chapter:

Lord, open my eyes so I can see what you’re doing.

And then:

Lord, open my eyes so I can see my enemy as you do.

That’s a potent combination. I find that the most powerful miracle in the chapter isn’t an iron axe head floating. It isn’t even that fiery angel armies filling the hills.
The most extraordinary miracle is that when God gives someone eyes to see differently, fear can become faith, enemies can become dinner guests, and an apparently hopeless situation can turn out to be only one small piece of a much larger story.

As I stood chatting with one very angst-filled and frustrated student last week, I remember my heart filling with compassion. “Oh my friend,” my heart whispered, “you don’t see it right now. Keep seeking. Trust me. You will.”

Please share this post with someone!
If you got something good from it, please “Like” it.
Comments are welcome.

RETURN TO THE MAIN WAYFARER BLOG PAGE

Enter Your Email Address Below, Click “Subscribe,” and Get Every Chapter-a-Day Post Delivered Right to Your Inbox!

Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify
Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.