Life has its ups and downs.
- Death of my spouse and others very close to me in 2018. Down…
- New direction in life. Ups and Downs…
- New opportunities. Ups for the most part...
- New realities. Definitely down…
But, the key to all of this is what I have learned. You see,
I could have allowed the downs to take me on a path of no return…a path that
would lead to me giving up. This path was very realistic to me after the death
of my beloved husband, John, of over 27 years. But, I knew that God had more
for me.
I knew that God had planted a seed on the inside of me that
would cause me to move forward even when I didn’t want to move forward. After
my husband’s death, I could have just stayed in, “It shall be well” land.
Instead, I moved like the Shunamite woman to the land of “It IS well…” Please allow
me to explain.
In II Kings 4:15 - 37, we meet a Shunamite woman. She was
intent on serving the Prophet God chose to use in that region in that season.
She convinced her husband to set up space for the Prophet in their home. When
the Prophet came through, he would have a place for him and his servant. This
action caused favor for this woman.
During one of their visits, the Prophet commanded his
servant to go and ask the woman what she needed. The woman needed nothing. But,
the Prophet saw into her heart. He sensed the longing she had for a child. He
spoke into her life to cause this desire to come to fruition.
The Shunamite woman had a little boy. Now, although
scripture does not go in to the relationship of the woman, her husband, and the
child, we can only imagine that, with the advent of this youngster in their lives,
they were feeling GOOD! They had a legacy, someone to whom they could impart
life, living, and love. They had a son.
And then a traumatic event occurred in their lives: he
died. Now, when you read through the scripture, you will see that this
Shunamite told the Prophet to not deceive her or do anything crazy. She had not
asked for a son. She didn’t need any shenanigans surrounding this event in her
life.
How many times has God approached you about something,
something you hadn’t even voiced a desire for, and then He offers it to you?
How did you feel? Did you respond as the Shunamite woman? With unbelief, a
little fear and doubt, maybe some anger that God was going to try you? Be honest with yourself. I have
been there.
In the past when I have known that God wanted to do something in my life, and I
knew He had spoken to me, I have reacted with unbelief, fear, trepidation;
myriad other emotions because I didn’t want to be tested. But, in the process
of growing with Him, I have discovered that life is full of testing. Testing is
where I get my testimony. (I know: cliché isn’t it?) I have discovered in this
walk with the Lord that He is going to test me to see if I really believe Him
and if I really want the thing He wants to bring into my life. Back to the
Shunamite…
Her bouncing baby boy is gone. She sends a message to her
husband to prepare a way for her to go to the Prophet. Her response to her
husband’s query was, “It shall be well…”
As I stood over my husband’s non-responsive body in the
Trauma Room of University Hospital here in Denver on August 7, 2018, I thought
those same words, “It shall be well…”
I whispered to the love of my life, “Mr. Bruno, you know you
can get up off that bed if you want to.”
To be honest, I can’t tell you if I
expected a response from him. I only knew what I wanted to happen.
The Shunamite mother was with her son when he passed; he
died on her lap. We don’t know the words that mother spoke over or to her son.
We don’t know the anguish she experienced as she experienced the last breath of
her child. We also don’t know the plan of God for her situation.
She took action. She knew that she needed to get to the
Prophet who had put her in this predicament. After all, she had told him to not
even play with her, hadn’t she?
As she took the cart to the man of God, we don’t know the
things that went through her mind. What could have been some of her thoughts?
“I’m going to give
this so-called prophet a piece of my mind! How dare he presume to give me what
I wanted when I didn’t even know what I wanted!”
“Why, God? WHY? What
did I ever do to you? Why would you do this to me? Didn’t I provide a place for
YOUR Prophet? How could you?”
“My son, my son!
Noooooooo! Please don’t take my son!”
But God had something for this woman. He had a new dawn, a
new day, a new way for her that could only come through this test. You see, as
she left her home, telling her husband, “It shall be well,” she had already
made up in her mind that she would get to the Man of God. She knew that he
would have...something. To be honest with you, I believe she knew in her heart of
hearts that this day would be a game-changer for all concerned. And it was.
By the time she had come close to the vicinity of the
Prophet, her response had changed to, “It IS well…”
What caused the change?
As we go through life’s journey, God has a way of changing
our perspective. He causes us to rise up higher so that we can view life from
His perspective and not our own.
The Shunamite woman had traveled a distance. God gave her
time to think about her position. Either she was going to believe God through
the Man of God, or her son was just going to be...dead.
What position are you in today? Does it appear that your situation or circumstance is dead?
Are you in the land of “It
Shall Be Well?” Are you ready to transition to the land of “It IS
Well?”
Do this today…
- Allow God to take you up higher in your thought processes. You are an Eagle. Look at your life, situation, or circumstance through the eyes of the eagle! Not a turkey or chicken.
- Speak life over your situation or circumstance. Death is all around you; life is inside of you. Speak it!
- Recognize that, even through the hardship, God has renewed His mercies for you today. Embrace the new dawn, new day, new way that He has for you.
.....and remember, It IS Well!
I pray that this has been a blessing for you. Please share
and join me in kingdom expansion and wisdom.
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