Seeing the World Differently

Scripture: “Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For our army is bigger than theirs!” Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” And the Lord opened the young man’s eyes so that he could see horses of fire and chariots of fire everywhere upon the mountain! 2 Kings 6:16-17

Observation: Over and over again, Elisha acts and behaves in ways that are out-of-step with the "reality" everyone else experiences. In chapters 4-6 alone, he ... eliminates poison by adding meal to a stew; feeds 100 men with one sack of corn; heals a Syrian general of leprosy by having him dip himself in the Jordan River; curses his own servant for accepting payment for his godly work; makes an axe head float in water by throwing a stick at it; greets and talks to an army whose entire mission is to kill him; and tells the king to serve a feast to said army instead of killing them.

Elisha sees the world differently, and here we see a glimpse of that. Elisha sees the spiritual realm of the Lord. By seeing the might of the Lord, and understanding the purpose of that might - to love and protect, not harm and destroy - he can choose to respond to situations differently. Instead of being afraid of ... poison, hunger, foolishness, poverty, loss, death, revenge ... Elisha embraces ... friendship, plenty, simplicity, provision, discovery, safety, forgiveness.

Seeing the Lord allows Elisha to enjoy a good and peaceful life, while those around him - experiencing the same things but seeing it through earthly eyes - repeatedly feel fear, anger, and greed.

Application: While it is very unlikely that I will ever see God's heavenly realm around me here on earth, would I behave differently if I truly believed and understood that it was there? Yes, of course I would ... most Christians would. I tend to see the worldly situations, without even trying to see how God might be positioned within the situations.

At Dothan, the Lord had a massive, fierce army positioned and ready to destroy, and thus Elisha knew he did not need to fear or fight. What does the Lord have around me? Angels with words of knowledge to guide my work? Filters to give others a positive impression of my actions? More than this, the fact the Lord is in my situations at all should give me cause to have a heart of ... friendship, plenty, simplicity, provision, discovery, safety, forgiveness.

Those would be good conditions to live within. Those sound like a life of peace and joy. If I would just see the world differently, knowing at all times that the Lord is in this place.

Prayer: Lord, Abba, my Lord God and my father in heaven, you are my portion and my provision. You are the God who sees me, and who sees to it. You are El Roi, and Yahweh Yireh. May I see you more, and live into this wonderful life you have created. I thank you for your daily provision, and for the gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. I desire you more and more in my life, and I know that I can have that, for you are already right here with me. Amen.