[Membersandfriends] Tuesday, September 14, 2004

Mon Sep 13 22:01:41 PDT 2004

The Upper Room Daily Devotional -- E-mail Edition
Brought to You by Upper Room Ministries
Tuesday, September 14, 2004

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THE LENS OF FAITH
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2 Kings 6:8-23 (NRSV)

Once when the king of Aram was at war with Israel, he took counsel with his officers. He said, "At such and such a place shall be my camp." But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel, "Take care not to pass this place, because the Arameans are going down there." The king of Israel sent word to the place of which the man of God spoke. More than once or twice he warned such a place so that it was on the alert. 

The mind of the king of Aram was greatly perturbed because of this; he called his officers and said to them, "Now tell me who among us sides with the king of Israel?" Then one of his officers said, "No one, my lord king. It is Elisha, the prophet in Israel, who tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedchamber." He said, "Go and find where he is; I will send and seize him." He was told, "He is in Dothan." So he sent horses and chariots there and a great army; they came by night, and surrounded the city. 

When an attendant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. His servant said, "Alas, master! What shall we do?" He replied, "Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them." Then Elisha prayed: "O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see." So the LORD opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw; the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. When the Arameans came down against him, Elisha prayed to the LORD, and said, "Strike this people, please, with blindness." So he struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. Elisha said to them, "This is not the way, and this is not the city; follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek." And he led them to Samaria. 

As soon as they entered Samaria, Elisha said, "O LORD, open the eyes of these men so that they may see." The LORD opened their eyes, and they saw that they were inside Samaria. When the king of Israel saw them he said to Elisha, "Father, shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?" He answered, "No! Did you capture with your sword and your bow those whom you want to kill? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink; and let them go to their master." So he prepared for them a great feast; after they ate and drank, he sent them on their way, and they went to their master. And the Arameans no longer came raiding into the land of Israel.

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Elisha prayed: "O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see."
- 2 Kings 6:17 (NRSV)
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IN order to capture the prophet Elisha, the Aramean army had surrounded the city of Dothan.  At daybreak when Elisha's servant saw the surrounding army, he was shocked.  Then Elisha prayed that the servant's eyes be opened.

Since his servant was not blind, what did Elisha intend?  Whether we see certain things or not can depend on the means we have for perceiving reality.  A telescope does not create new celestial bodies, yet we cannot see some celestial objects without it.  A microscope does not create bacteria, but we cannot see them without one.  When the servant's eyes were opened, he saw another army on their side -- God's heavenly host.

Likewise, if we are not aware of God, that does not diminish the reality of God.  Yet God puts within each of us a desire for relationship with our Creator.  Apart from God, we would remain unforgiven and have no hope of eternal life.  Though we cannot literally perceive God through our natural senses of sight, touch, sound, smell, or taste, we are given faith.  Faith is the lens that allows us to see God.

Prayer:  Loving God, thank you that by faith we can know and feel your love for us.  Amen.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Faith enables us to see and hear God.

-- Stephen M. Njiro (Onderstepoort, South Africa)

PRAYER FOCUS: Those who need spiritual vision

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RELATED READING ...

THE UPPER ROOM DISCIPLINES 2005 offers daily meditations based on the readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. This annual book serves as a "portable pastor" and offers spiritual guidance throughout the year.
http://www.upperroom.org/bookstore/desc.asp?ep_id=30&item_id=182119

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The scripture quotation is from the NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION of the Bible, copyright (c) 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.