By: Jared Welden, Lead Pastor at Haleysburg
I can remember the night our son was born.
Things had not gone exactly to plan. We were in the hospital 3 weeks early and we had been told we wouldn’t leave until we had a new member of our family.
Everything was alright. Neither the baby nor my wife were in danger. It was simply time for his arrival.
The time came and my wife was taken back to be prepped for what was to come.
Meanwhile, I was left alone for a brutally long time…
Okay, maybe like 30 minutes.
While I sat outside the delivery room and waited, I began to think back on all of the conversations my wife and I had been having in the weeks leading up to the due date.
How can we be parents? How will we know what to do? Are we ready for this?
Then, my thoughts shifted: Man, if I had known last night was the last time I could sleep without worrying about a baby, I would have slept in longer!
In 2 Kings 2, Elisha was having a crisis of his own. His mentor/friend, Elijah, was going to be leaving him soon and we, as the reader, can see that Elisha was definitely not ready.
In their final moments together, Elisha and Elijah visit three different sites (a sort of farewell tour of holy places). Along the way, various people are reminding Elisha of his inevitable parting with his teacher.
At each stop, Elijah even tries to soften the blow by requesting Elisha to stay behind. But Elisha insists on remaining with Elijah.
When the time finally comes, Elisha asks for a double blessing from Elijah, which is equivalent to the rights of the firstborn son.
In this request, he is asking that Elijah bless him so that he can faithfully continue the work as prophet of the Lord.
From all the context we have, looking at his attitude along the way, it seems that Elisha was unsure of whether he could really take up Elijah’s mantle.
Even after the chariots, fire, and whirlwind (boy what a way to go!) it seems like Elisha still has his doubts that God would be with him as he was with Elijah.
But then he picks up his mentor’s cloak and strikes the Jordan calling out to see if God is still there...
And what happens?
The water parts and Elisha emerges an empowered prophet! God was indeed still with him!
I don’t believe that any of us have been called to part rivers, call down plagues, or raise people from the dead. (If you have, please let me know because I want to hang around with you.)
But in some sense, we all may relate to the worries Elisha felt before Elijah was taken up.
The mounting pressures of the world, the disastrous news we seem to constantly be fed, and the overall stress of our busy lives can dwindle our hope that God still hears us or even cares. How can I show God’s love to others when I can barely hold onto it for myself? I’m feeling unsure. I’m having my doubts.
Is God really with me?
During the Advent season, we are reminded that the answer is: YES! Like Elisha, we can have hope that God is present, because God descended among us, as a baby, Immanuel, God with us.
Our stress, anxiety and, you know what, let’s just say it, depression, can cripple us when it comes to any kind of light at the end of the tunnel.
But this season reminds us that Hope is born and we have something to believe in.