DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL FOR APRIL 16, 2023  (IT IS WELL!)
 

TOPIC : IT IS WELL!

Text: 2 Kings 4:18-37 (KJV)

18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

19 And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

21 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.

22 And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.

23 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.

25 So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:

26 Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well:

27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the Lord hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.

28 Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

29 Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.

30 And the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.

31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.

32 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.

33 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the Lord.

34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

35 Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

36 And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.

37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

KEY VERSE: “Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.” – (2 Kings 4:26)

MESSAGE

A brainy quote goes thus: “A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials. Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of. There are so many things that life is, and no matter how many breakthroughs, trials will exist and we are going to get through it”.

The Shunammite woman exemplifies the typical faith required in times of trouble. She and her aged husband received a miracle child after waiting many years. The devil wanted to surreptitiously snatch that bundle of joy from her. She knew where to take her matter to. The prophet, Elisha, who was used of God to decree an end to her barrenness, qualifies as an elder to whom cases like this are referred for further prayers (James 5:13-16). She maintained utmost secrecy when she undertook her journey of faith to Mount Carmel. When she eventually got to see the prophet, her faith soared through the darkest hour of her life, when she confessed, ‘it is well!’ Her son was brought back to life.

There are others in the Bible who stayed calm and confident in the face of the most challenging trials. The example of Abraham and his wife who “against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations” comes to mind (Romans 4:18,19). Isaac, the promised son and his wife, Rebecca had delay also in childbirth. They were later blessed with Esau and Jacob. The woman of Zarephath also had her son brought back to life by Prophet Elijah; same with Jairus, whose 12-year-old daughter was raised from the dead by Jesus Christ.

The lesson here is to keep confessing positively no matter what challenges we face. Negative confessions adversely affect our faith. We can only live in the future we already see with our eyes of faith. It is well!

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Faith is the link between fear and hope.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Acts 18-19

Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM) written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi. It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.