” And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us. Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make a place there, where we may dwell.

And he answered, Go ye. And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants.

And he answered, I will Go.” 2 Kings 6:1-3

I’d like to take a moment for introduce our new feature, which I like to call, Fun with Old English.

Just teasing, I do want to stop and translate that before we get to the main portion.

To break this down. Elisha is the prophet that God chose to follow up after the prophet Elijah became discouraged and worn and just wanted to go.

God honored his request by taking him into heaven after he had been sent to recruit Elisha as replacement, the coolest thing is that Elijah did not die, God just took him.

The sons of the prophets were the young men who served in the ministry, learning from the main prophet.

They all lived together and did what was needed.

At this point they had outgrown their space and wanted to build another, and they wanted Elisha to go with them.

Be content and the term pray thee is just OE for asking politely.

“So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.

But as one was feeling a beam (cutting down a tree), the axe head fell into the water: and he cried (shouted), and said, Alas Master! for it was borrowed. 

And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it into the thither (there): and the iron did swim.

Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand and took it.”  2 Kings 6:4-7

Master basically means teacher. The horror expressed by the young wasn’t just because the lender of the ax would be upset at him.

The prophets and sons of prophets lived by faith trusting that God would provide.

He did not have the money to pay for the lost ax head and at the owner could take legal action against him and could have possibly forced him to become enslaved to pay the debt if it could not be recovered.

Through an absolute miracle, God made iron float to the surface.

Can you imagine something so heavy just floating to the top of water? It would have been mind- blowing.

It is one of my favorites because it proves yet again, God’s unfailing care and concern for his children. As that cry left the lips of the young man, God was filling Elisha’s heart with instruction on its retrieval.

This story is a wonderful example of how God cares for every aspect of our lives.

Every single detail. Any need that we have we can take to him, and he will help us.

Let’s check out what Jesus taught us on the subject:

Luke 7:7-11: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

If ye the, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?“

Think about it, even people who can be mean and nasty to others often have a soft spot for their children and that was what he was saying, even they will do their best for their children.

So how much more will God, who is good, perfect, holy, and all-powerful give those who ask him?

Ask, ask anything. When I was first saved, I struggled with this. I was truly in awe of God’s power and until then I had no idea what salvation could truly be, how wonderful and what it was like to experience his presence.

I desperately needed a healing and every time I was in church, they would ask if anyone needed prayer and I would think about and then reason in myself that he had already done so much for me that I should not ask for more.

This was a completely wrong thought.

God has all power; we are not told that we must choose between things we can ask for.

It is all available to us, salvation, healing, deliverance, encouragement, peace, comfort, anything and everything.

Favor with our jobs, favor with people, help finding a misplaced item that we desperately need. A spiritual shoulder when we need a good cry.

Fortunately, I had a good support system that helped me understand that it is good to ask for help and not only good, but he wants us to ask, he doesn’t just come and take over, he gives us freewill.

I did finally get prayer one night and got the touch in my body that I needed.

And now, after understanding that, it would take forever to tell all the wonderful things that he has done.

Seeking, seeking God and his presence and seeking his face. The more we seek, the more we find and the more he will shine on us and in us.

Knocking on the doors we would like to see opened, spiritual breakthroughs for us, our family. Knocking on doors of life that we would like to see opened, that can apply to many things.

Meeting him in prayer with thanksgiving fir what he has done and praise for who and all that he is.

Remember this, this promise is for his children.

Ephesians 3:20: ” Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.”

Love & peace to you! Until next time.

NBJ 2024/ Rev, N Brown Johnson