Faith In Famine

2 Kings 4:8-17 And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

Sometimes we think the things we do and the things that happen to us are just coincidence.  But as believers, this couldn’t be farther from the truth.  We should always take advantage of the promptings we have from God to do something or pray for someone.  We never know what is really happening. 

One thing I like about the Shunammite woman is the fact that she wanted to use her resources to be kind to the man of God.  She had no idea that in the next few years a famine was coming and she would have to leave that home and land, but she must not have been too attached to material things if she wanted to build a room for the prophet of God.  She took advantage of her present life to be a blessing.

She ends up gaining a son, but then it appears her life went down in shambles because her son dies AND she eventually LOSES her house and her land!  That would be enough for many of us to stop serving God and run off and hide in some corner of this world and quietly live without ever placing our trust in Him to guide us again, wouldn’t it?  But this woman stays in contact with the prophet after he brings her son back to life and listens to him when he says to leave her house for seven years because a famine was coming.  Seven years. 

Have you endured a “famine” in your life after trusting God and all He has said to do?  Did you question yourself if you were doing the right thing?  Dr. Jack Hyles made a statement one time, “Never undo in doubt what you did in faith.”  When God points us in a direction to follow, we should take advantage of obeying Him and following.  We shouldn’t fear what lies ahead, even when it appears that life has gotten worse.  We should keep right on ahead trusting and following.  We shouldn’t undo anything because doubt creeps up.

I don’t know the heart of the Shunammite woman and how fearful some nights were for her.  I don’t know if she wondered if she made the right decision or not, but the sheer fact that she was a woman tells me that there were moments where her emotions more than likely got a hold of her and made her fear the future, but she didn’t quit.  As soon as those seven years were finished, she came marching back to town and demanded to be heard from by the King and argued for her land and house once again.  And guess what?  She got it. 

Jesus teaches us about giving our everything for him and the rewards for our service IN HIS NAME. 

Matthew 10:39-41 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.

Is God prompting you to do something today?  Don’t think about it, just do it.  Lose your life for Him.  The Shunammite woman didn’t know Christ, but she believed in God and wanted to serve Him.  Faith is the key here that you and I can take a lesson from.  Let’s have faith to keep giving to our missions programs, don’t falter on visitation and vacation Bible school.  Even if you are in the middle of a famine right now in your life, trust God that He is still leading you! 

Until next time, Lord willing,

Sheri