2 Kings 6:5–7: “But as one [of the young prophets] was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, ‘Alas, master! For it was borrowed.’ So the man of God [Elisha] said, ‘Where did it fall?’ And he showed him the place. So he cut off a stick, and threw it in there; and he made the iron float. Therefore he said, ‘Pick it up for yourself.’ So he reached out his hand and took it.”

July 31st, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Elisha had charge over a group of young prophets, and they came and told him the place they were meeting was too small and that they needed to build a larger one. As they were building, an ax head that one of the prophets had borrowed fell into the Jordan River. Elisha threw a wooden stick into the river in the exact spot where the ax head had sunk, and by the power of God, the heavy iron floated to the surface. Elisha made the young student personally take the ax head out of the water. By doing so, the student became a participant in the miracle, which would lead him to mature and look for God in hard circumstances in the future.

Still to this day, some foolish “scholars” try to explain away miracles. Why bother? The simple answer is that it is a supernatural act of God, which is not difficult for Him since He is the Creator of the laws of physics. The One who made the laws simply suspends them to accomplish something for one of His children.

We find an illustration in this Old Testament story of what the New Testament teaches us: the Lord desires to enter into our daily lives. Our greatest human attribute is the capacity God created in us to be in a personal relationship with Him. And we are in our finest position when we are on our knees before Him in humble prayer, as 1 Peter tells us, “casting all [our] anxiety on Him, because He cares for [us]” (5:7, NASB). What kind of difficulty are you facing this week? Have you taken it to the Lord of the universe? Asking is so simple, but we often forget to do so, even when we are supposedly mature believers.

“LORD, please carry all our cares for us this day. We place them at the foot of the cross.”