{Be Loved} Every Little Thing Matters
In 2 Kings 6:1-7, there’s a very interesting little story. There’s really nothing that precedes it or comes after it to show us why it’s actually in the bible.
Elisha is living in a kind of barracks for prophets, and one of them tells him that they want to move to a bigger place. So Elisha gives them permission to go to the Jordan River and build a bigger place. But they ask Elisha to come with them, they don’t want to be parted from him, he is their mentor. So he goes along with them.
As they are cutting down trees, one guy loses the head of the axe he is using. And not only does he lose it, but it falls into the river, which is very deep and rushing too fast to even think about entering. The axehead is made of iron, so it’s worth a lot of money, and that’s not even the worst part. The worst part is that this guy had borrowed it, so he obviously can’t afford one for himself, and now he’s really up a creek without a paddle. He cries out to Elisha, and tells him that the axehead fell into the river, and that it was borrowed.
Elisha doesn’t hesitate to act, and he also doesn’t seem perplexed or to pause and wonder what to do. He simply says, “where did it sink?”
The man points to the spot it fell into the river.
Elisha cuts off a branch and tosses it into the river, and the axehead floats to the top of the water and just sits there, despite the depth of the water and the current. Elisha tells the other man to grab it, and he does.
That’s it. That is the end of the story.
When I came across this story a few weeks ago, I was looking for the story where Elisha calls out to the Lord to open the eyes of his servant (who is worried because they are surrounded by the enemy), and he sees chariots of fire and the hills full of horses. Elisha calls the Lord to strike the enemy blind, and then he leads the people looking to kill him to Samaria and then throws them a party and sends them home when he could have allowed them all to be slaughtered. This guy had no fear, he stood exactly where God told him to and he did very brave, outrageous things.
And yet, we see him doing a brave, outrageous thing in a situation where it doesn’t really affect God’s people. He does something that doesn’t even make sense…he throws a branch in the river. The axehead wouldn’t even have been in the same place. I certainly would feel a lot of apprehension and anxiety before taking such a big risk to step out and do something that would make me look really foolish if it didn’t work.
So what is the point of this story? Why is it included?
It’s the little things in life that matter the most. That, when added up, amount to a pile much bigger than the massive turning points in our lives.
As a culture, as humans, we have a tendency to look to God only during those big crucial decision moments. Or during a moment of crisis…when we get blindsided and we reach out for our Daddy God hoping He is somewhere within reach with reasons for the hurting, the grieving, the pain.
How often do we reach out in the day-to-day? While running between errands and classes and the time commitments that fill up every. single. moment.
Not only do those little things matter and really sum up our life experience, but God cares about them. God cares about the little things! He cares about the daily stress, the things that make us knee-jerk in anxiety, depression, or fear.
In fact, He is longing for us to draw near in these little moments. It’s like, every time I get cut off while driving, I have a choice. Get angry, let that rage feeling overwhelm me (even for just a moment) and react, or to draw near. When I get bad news, I can let it derail my day and trigger a cycle of emotions that are difficult to overcome, or I can draw near. There’s a heavenly perspective that God is constantly trying to get me to look at my world with. He’s holding out the glasses that allow me to see in new colors, new depth, to feel with a whole different set of emotions.
He’s saying, “Beloved! Let’s walk hand-in-hand. I’m right here, I am always right here, and I want nothing more than to know you and be known by you. I’ve got things you can’t even begin to imagine in store for you, but you have to trust me. Beloved, I am your source, and I am all-sufficient. There’s nothing you need that you can’t get from Me. How much do you long for more? There’s always more for you!”
Philippians 4:6-7 says, “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
This includes every single little and big thing. All the ruts in the road, and all the mountains that seem completely unsurpassable. In EVERYTHING, by prayer (talking to God) and supplication (asking) WITH THANKSGIVING let your requests be made known to God. This is so amazing because God knows exactly how to get our minds in the right place. He tells us not to be anxious about anything, which pretty much feels impossible most days, but then He tells us how. Anxiety and worrying leave, they FLEE when we spend time with God and when we GIVE THANKS.
And when they leave, the peace of God comes and it’s like a rushing wind of awesome. It fills every crevice of doubt and any remaining what-ifs and then coats our hearts and minds with protection. How amazing is God’s peace?!
This month we are focusing on gratefulness. I can’t think of a better time to remember that God is a loving Father who cares about the little things. This is a great time to be thankful that God has given us his very Presence to hang out with every day. And to think on the verse that says, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand.” (Psalm 139:17-18a)
If God has that many thoughts toward me, and I really start to get how huge of a thing that is, then the response I will have is to turn my thoughts to Him, especially when I really don’t feel like it. Because Papa God cares, He IS love, and He works all things together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). There really is nothing to fear or worry about if I really believe and know that God is good and trustworthy and cares about every single bit of my life. Woohoo! How awesome!
prayer
God, I believe that you are always good. And because this is true, I choose to put my trust in you. I know that I won’t always understand what you are doing, but I trust you. You are not a distant God, you are near and you have more for me to discover. I want more of you. Thank you for caring about the little things in my life. I am so grateful that guilt, shame, and condemnation will NEVER come from you. Thank you that your perfect love casts out all fear. I want to love you more, and I invite you to be more involved in my life. Thank you for your presence! Amen.
