TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
She said to her husband, “I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God. Let’s make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him.” 2 Kings 4:9-10
Read: 2 Kings 4:8-10
Listen: 2 Kings 4
TODAY’S MESSAGE
Elisha traveled around the countryside regularly. A well-to-do woman from the town of Shunem wanted to support him. So, she not only invited him into her home and made him a meal, she began to treat him like family. It wasn’t just a one off thing—he came to them regularly. In response, she and her husband built an additional room on the roof of their house for him. This was a significant sacrifice. People often used their roof as a sort of patio. So when they built this room, they gave up some of their space for Elisha’s benefit.
This woman from Shunem has a lot to teach us. She likely had resources to spend. It’s striking that she didn’t merely use those resources to build herself a bigger patio or renovate to be more comfortable for them. Instead, she decided to partner with God and what he was doing through Elisha.
Showing hospitality like this didn’t come naturally back then, and it doesn’t come naturally now. It requires us to allow God to mess with our lives. When we let him mess with our lives, he may start moving the patio furniture. We may find ourselves wanting things we don’t remember wanting before. We start to see needs we’ve never recognized before, and we view our resources as gifts we can use to serve others.
IN YOUR CHAIR TIME TODAY
We’ve all been given gifts by God that could be used in his service. Spend a few minutes today with a journal or your mobile device. Write down gifts you’ve received. These could be skills, abilities, time, resources, or any number of other things. End with a prayer asking God to help you dream ways to use these gifts for his service.
Download a printable PDF of the BTW week here.
