Elisha had told the woman

     whose son he had brought back to life,

“Take your family and move

     to some other place,

     for the Lord has called

     for a famine on Israel

     that will last for seven years.”

(2 Kings 8:1)

 

The woman of Shumen followed good advice; and after the famine was over, brought her family back home and then went to see the king about reclaiming her house and land.

 

As she came in,

     the king was talking with Gehazi,

     the servant of the man of God.

The king had just said,

     “Tell me some stories

      about the great things Elisha has done.”

 

And Gehazi was telling the king about the time

     Elisha had brought a boy back to life.

At that very moment,

     the mother of the boy walked in

     to make her appeal to the king

     about her house and land.

 

“Look, my lord the king!”

     Gehazi exclaimed.

“Here is the woman now,

     and this is her son—

     the very one Elisha brought back to life!”  

(2 Kings 8:4-5)

 

“Is this true?”

     the king asked her.

     And she told him the story.

So he directed one of his officials to see that

     everything she had lost

     was restored to her,

     including the value

     of any crops that had been harvested

     during her absence.

(2 Kings 8:6)

 

Not many of our life stories could begin the way this one did, but they could all finish up the same way.

 

Restored.

 

Because the Lord God, Maker of heaven and earth, Redeemer of all people, and the One whose throne room I enter every time I pray, has said…

 

“Then I will make up to you for the years

     that the swarming locust has eaten,

     the creeping locust,

     the stripping locust

     and the gnawing locust,

     my great army which I sent among you…”

Joel 2:25