Desperate Faith

In this latest season of life, my thoughts have been captivated by the idea of how we can live lives that are defined by faith. I think oftentimes when we read the Scriptures, there is a disconnect. We hear stories of seas being parted, fire from heaven being called down, and people being raised from the dead, and it can seem like a distant reality. After all, I don’t know many people these days that are succeeding at making the sun stand still (see Joshua 10 for that one).

So I started to ask myself, what was it about these individuals that allowed them to see God work is such mighty ways? Or more importantly, how did they even get the faith to ask or move towards the unseen?

In 2 Kings 3 we find ourselves in an interesting situation.

Essentially we find ourselves in the middle of the desert on the brink of a battle. But there is a crisis. The Kings and armies of Israel, Judah, and Edom, have run out of water. Now I have never been in the army or been in the desert, but it seems to go without argument that there aren’t too many more severe situations than being in the desert and running out of water.

What can you do? It seems to define desperation.

But the good thing about being desperate, as many come to know, is that it often leads us to seek and depend on God.

And we find that here the situation is no different.

Interestingly enough, these Kings, some God fearers… others not… realized that they needed something that only God could give. And so they seek out the prophet of the Lord, Elisha.

Well, the end of the story is a good one. Elisha receives a word from God that the kings and armies should “‘make this valley full of ditches.’ 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 shall drink, both you and your cattle and your beasts.’” (2 Kings 3:16-17)

And sure enough… they dig. And sure enough… the water comes.

But the principle here is key. You see, they moved and dug on faith because they understood their dependence. They moved on faith because they were desperate.

And our lives are no different. We are totally dependent on a sovereign Lord who even determines the next breaths that you and I are about to take. And that should drive us to desperation and dependence on Him. It should lead us towards a relentless life of faith and pursuit of God.

What I have found to be true is that our level of faith is directly connected to the reality of our need for dependence.

For only a desperate man digs ditches in the desert without a cloud in the sky.

And only through our desperation will our lives be defined by faith.