Running to the Man of God

Today I want to talk about the Shunammite woman. I love her story in 2 Kings chapter 4. Right from the start she perceived that Elisha was a holy man of God and fed him and then asked her husband to build a little room for Elisha to use whenever he passed through Shunem. Elisha wants to do something nice for her to say thank you for her care and kindness. She asks for nothing and Gehazi tells Elisha that she has no son and her husband is old. Elisha tells her that she will have a son around this time next year. Later the boy dies after having a terrible headache. The woman lays him on the bed she set up for Elisha and proceeds to go see Elisha to ask him for help. The bible says she asks her husband for a servant and a donkey so she can "run to the man of God". Her husband asks why and she tells him "it shall be well". She trusts that Elisha will make things right and help her on behalf of God. 

I think it is interesting that when she gets to Mt. Carmel, Elisha sees her afar off and recognizes her. He sends Gehazi immediately to see if all is well with her, her husband and her son. They had a good enough relationship that he knew her from a distance and also knew that if she had come, there must be something wrong. Her response is "it is well". She had told her husband that "it shall be well" but once she got to Elisha she said "it is well". At that point in time it was not yet well. Her son was still dead, but she trusted that Elisha would do something to change that scenario. Guess what! He did! 

I know that we no longer have prophets like in Old Testament times but we do have pastors that God provides to give us help in counseling, guidance, and training. A pastor is to be the under-shepherd to take care of the flock. It amazes me how often church members do not utilize this! Many of the flock have problems or need guidance yet they go ahead alone or seek counsel from friends and family rather than the person whom God has given to give the help. I understand that God gives us people in our lives who can be a great support and many may even give biblical advice but God intends for a pastor to be a source of help. If you remember, the Shunammite woman didn't seek help from her husband other than permission to run to the man of God. She went straight to the person she felt had the most pull with God in her life. The one who could give the best help. 

Many church members keep themselves at a distance to the pastor and pastor's wife. They don't let us in. They keep their lives secret and don't share anything. This makes it hard to recognize when they have a problem. It also makes it harder to offer help or counsel because we know nothing of the details of their lives. My husband has been in full time ministry since 2003. In all those years there have only been a few people come to him for advice or counsel. As a matter of fact he had more people ask when he was an associate pastor than as a pastor. We are never sure what to think of that. Is it because members don't want the pastor knowing what is happening in their lives? Is it because they don't trust what he will say? Is it because they think they know what he will say and don't want to hear it? Some people don't like to ask the pastor because "he's so busy and I don't want to bother him". Guess what, that's part of his job! God says so! If a pastor ever acts put out because someone needs help, it may be time for him to get out of the ministry. 

I think people should be like the Shunammite woman and run to the man of God where she was confident she would find help. If you are not confident in your pastor, maybe it's time to find a different church where you can be confident in a leader. Not every church is a good fit for every person. Just saying!