Rick James
I’ve been noticing recently how many of my prayers seem to start with the words “Help”. I’m usually praying for God to sort out difficult human situations. But this week I’ve been thinking about that amazing story in 2 Kings 6, where Elisha’s servant wakes up to find them surrounded by a ‘strong force of horses and chariots’ sent by the King of Aram to capture them. Not surprisingly, he panics. I assume that Elisha will then pray for God to rescue them. But instead he simply prays for his servant “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see”. Elisha already sees. God reveals to the servant the hills full of a much greater force of horses and chariots of fire.
As a leader, Elisha responded to his servant’s fear by praying for him to see the situation from God’s perspective. There is a spiritual element in the battles we face and God is involved and active. In difficult times at work, it may not be possible to give staff certainty about what exactly is going to happen, but we can be certain that God is present in the midst of it all. When facing a seemingly impossible challenge we first need to look intentionally and prayerfully to see what God is doing.
- What can I take from Elisha’s example into my week ahead?
- What difficult situations can I ask God to open my eyes and reveal what He is doing?