God sees what you can’t
For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ ~ 2 Kings 3:17
Have you ever been in a situation where you desperately needed God to move, but there was absolutely no evidence that He was doing anything? You prayed, you waited, you looked at the circumstances, and nothing seems to be changing. No rain, no clouds, no obvious sign, nothing. At that point, it can be tempting to think, “Well, I guess God didn’t hear me.” We tend to be much more comfortable trusting God when we can see a little evidence that He’s working. Faith gets a whole lot more challenging when the answer is still invisible.
That’s exactly where we find the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom in today’s scripture reading. They were going into battle against Moab, but after traveling for seven days, they ran out of water. Their armies and animals were in serious trouble. The situation looked desperate, and King Jehoram immediately began blaming God for the problem.
Jehoshaphat, however, asked a much better question, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here?” They found Elisha, and when Elisha sought the Lord, God gave them an unusual instruction. He told them to make the valley full of ditches because water was coming, even though they wouldn’t see wind or rain.
Imagine being one of those soldiers. You’re exhausted, thirsty, and probably wondering why someone is asking you to dig holes in the ground. You might be thinking, “We came here for water, not a landscaping project!” But they followed the instructions and the next morning, the valley was filled with water.
This chapter gives us some powerful points about what to do when we can’t see what God is doing yet. Faith doesn’t always require us to understand what God is doing. Sometimes it simply requires us to trust Him enough to do what He’s asking us to do.
Below are three takeaways for you to consider today:
1. Don’t let your circumstances tell you what God is capable of
The first thing we see is that the kings became discouraged because of what they could see. They had no water, and they were in the middle of a wilderness. From their perspective, they were in trouble. Jehoram immediately said, “Alas! For the Lord has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.” Notice how quickly he interpreted the circumstances. There was no water, so he assumed God had brought them there to destroy them.
We can do the same thing. When something doesn’t go the way we expected, we can assume God has abandoned us. When the door closes, we think the opportunity is over. When the money isn’t there, we assume provision isn’t coming. When the answer hasn’t arrived, we assume God isn’t listening. But circumstances don’t get to determine God’s faithfulness.
Maybe you’re in a season right now where you can’t see how things are going to work out. Perhaps you’re waiting for something you’ve prayed about for a long time. Maybe you’ve been obedient, but you’re still looking at an empty valley. Don’t let what you see convince you that God isn’t working. Your circumstances may be real, but they’re not the whole story. God sees what you can’t see.
2. Sometimes God asks you to prepare for what you can’t see
Elisha gave the kings a strange instruction, “Make this valley full of ditches.” There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. There wasn’t a rainstorm coming. There wasn’t even a little puddle to encourage them. Yet God told them to prepare.
This is one of those moments where obedience probably felt a little ridiculous. Imagine digging ditches in a dry valley while you’re already exhausted and thirsty. Somebody probably had to say, “Are we sure this is what we’re supposed to be doing?” But God was asking them to make room for what He was about to provide. Sometimes God will ask us to prepare before we see the provision. The times when we think we are waiting on God are usually the times the He is waiting on us to get ready.
Maybe you’re praying for a new opportunity, but God is asking you to prepare now. Maybe you’re asking Him for growth in your ministry, but He’s asking you to prepare your heart and your leadership. Maybe you’re praying for a breakthrough in your family, but He’s asking you to start changing the way you communicate. Maybe you’re asking God for direction in your career, but He’s prompting you to develop skills, make connections, or take a step of faith.
The ditch comes before the water. That doesn’t mean every plan we make is guaranteed to succeed. It means that when God gives us direction, obedience often comes before evidence. Sometimes we’re waiting for God to give us the water while God is waiting for us to dig the ditch. Ask yourself, “What can I do today to prepare for what I’m praying for?”
If you’re praying for God to work through you, prepare yourself. If you’re praying for a ministry opportunity, get ready. If you’re praying for restoration in a relationship, start by allowing God to work on your own heart. If you’re asking God for something new, don’t be afraid to prepare before you see it. Faith isn’t passive. Sometimes faith looks like picking up a shovel to start digging.
3. God can provide in ways you never expected
God told them something very specific, He said: “You will not see wind, nor will you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water.” I love that because God didn’t say, “You’ll see the storm coming.” He specifically told them they wouldn’t see the normal signs they were looking for or might expect. God was going to provide, but He wasn’t going to do it in the way they expected.
Sometimes we put God in a box because we’ve decided what an answer is supposed to look like. We tell God how the door needs to open, who needs to call, how much money needs to come in, or what circumstances need to change. Then God does something completely different and we’re surprised.
Maybe the answer comes through a person you never expected. Maybe the opportunity comes through a door you weren’t looking at. Maybe God changes you before He changes the circumstances. Maybe the provision comes in pieces instead of all at once. God isn’t limited to the method we’ve imagined.
Think about your own life. You may be asking God to change someone else, while God is working on you. You may be asking Him to remove a difficult situation, while He is giving you grace to walk through it. You may be asking for one particular opportunity, while God is preparing something completely different. Don’t decide what God can do based on how little you can see.
The water came without the wind and rain they expected. God didn’t need to follow their expectations to fulfill His promise. That is encouraging because sometimes we are watching the sky waiting for a cloud when God is already preparing the valley.
There is another part of this chapter that is easy to overlook. The kings didn’t receive the answer because they had everything figured out. They received direction when they sought the Lord. This is an important point. When you don’t know what to do, seek God. When you don’t understand the situation, seek God. When you’re frustrated, seek God. When you’re tired of waiting, seek God.
Don’t allow uncertainty to push you away from God. Let it push you toward Him. The valley may look dry today, but that doesn’t mean it will stay dry. Maybe you’re in a dry place spiritually. Maybe you’re waiting for a financial breakthrough. Maybe you’re believing for something in your family. Maybe you’re carrying a ministry responsibility and wondering how you’re going to keep going. You may not see the wind. You may not see the rain. But God doesn’t need you to see the process to trust His ability to provide.
Today I want to encourage you to keep digging the ditches God has asked you to dig, even when you don’t see the water yet. Keep praying, keep obeying, keep preparing and keep showing up. Don’t allow an empty valley to convince you that God has forgotten you.
The Israelites couldn’t see where the water was coming from, but God already knew. Your job isn’t to create the water. Your job is to follow God’s direction and make room for what He wants to do. Sometimes your “ditch” is making the phone call you’ve been avoiding. Sometimes it’s preparing for the opportunity you’ve been praying for. Sometimes it’s forgiving someone. Sometimes it’s getting your heart ready for a new season. Sometimes it’s simply getting up tomorrow and being faithful again.
You may feel like you’re digging holes in a dry valley today, but don’t underestimate what God can do with your obedience. The valley that looks empty to you may already be part of God’s provision. Don’t tell God how to get the water to you, just get ready to receive it. Preparation is your part, the water is God’s part.
Today’s scripture reading: 2 Kings 3
1 Now Jehoram the son of Ahab became king over Israel at Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years.
2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not like his father and mother; for he put away the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had made.
3 Nevertheless he persisted in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin; he did not depart from them.
4 Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheepbreeder, and he regularly paid the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.
5 But it happened, when Ahab died, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
6 So King Jehoram went out of Samaria at that time and mustered all Israel.
7 Then he went and sent to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
And he said, “I will go up; I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
8 Then he said, “Which way shall we go up?”
And he answered, “By way of the Wilderness of Edom.”
9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom, and they marched on that roundabout route seven days; and there was no water for the army, nor for the animals that followed them.
10 And the king of Israel said, “Alas! For the Lord has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.”
11 But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of the Lord by him?” So one of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.”
12 And Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13 Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother.” But the king of Israel said to him, “No, for the Lord has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.”
14 And Elisha said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you, nor see you.
15 But now bring me a musician.” Then it happened, when the musician played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him.
16 And he said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches.’
17 For thus says the Lord: ‘You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’
18 And this is a simple matter in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.
19 Also you shall attack every fortified city and every choice city, and shall cut down every good tree, and stop up every spring of water, and ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
20 Now it happened in the morning, when the grain offering was offered, that suddenly water came by way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.
21 And when all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, all who were able to bear arms and older were gathered; and they stood at the border.
22 Then they rose up early in the morning, and the sun was shining on the water; and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood.
23 And they said, “This is blood; the kings have surely struck swords and have killed one another; now therefore, Moab, to the spoil!”
24 So when they came to the camp of Israel, Israel rose up and attacked the Moabites, so that they fled before them; and they entered their land, killing the Moabites.
25 Then they destroyed the cities, and each man threw a stone on every good piece of land and filled it; and they stopped up all the springs of water and cut down all the good trees. But they left the stones of Kir Haraseth intact. However the slingers surrounded and attacked it.
26 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took with him seven hundred men who drew swords, to break through to the king of Edom, but they could not.
27 Then he took his eldest son who would have reigned in his place, and offered him as a burnt offering upon the wall; and there was great indignation against Israel. So they departed from him and returned to their own land.
Journal:
- What situation in my life currently feels like a dry valley?
- Have I allowed my circumstances to make me question God’s ability or faithfulness?
- What “ditch” might God be asking me to dig right now as I prepare for what I’m praying for?
- Am I waiting to see evidence before I’m willing to obey?
- Have I been telling God how I want Him to answer instead of trusting Him to answer in His way?
- What is one practical step of obedience I can take today, even if I don’t see the outcome yet?
