When You Can’t Take Anymore (2 Kings 3:9-14, Part 2)

Let’s start with this: Your greatest need becomes a gift when it drives you to depend on God. We saw this last week in 2 Kings 3. Let’s review.

The King of Moab, who was evil, decided to not pay taxes to the King of Israel anymore. So, the king of Israel, king of Judah, and the king of Edom joined forces and decided to march toward Moab to defeat him and his army.
This should have been easy. Three kings against one king. Three armies against one army. Everything was going great until the three armies ran out of water on their way to Moab. People can only live without water for 3 days. They became desperate. They could lose the battle and lose their armies before the battle ever started. A lot was at stake here.
But God was about to teach them something and reveal something significant to them about Himself. What we need to remember is this: Our desperation is often God’s preparation for His revelation. God will often allow you to become desperate because without it you would not be looking for God’s intervention, God’s presence, or God’s power. God uses our desperation to prepare us to see something we need to see about Him.
Out of desperation, these three kings went to the prophet of God, Elisha, to see if they could get a word from God on what to do.
When they arrived at Elisha’s place, Elisha decided that he would seek God and get a word from God for them because of Jehoshaphat’s faithfulness. We saw an overflow principle here. We learned that God will bless others, because of your faithfulness. The reason God is going to bless your family is because of your faithfulness. The reason God is going to bless your marriage is because of your faithfulness. The reason God is going to bless your ministry is because of your faithfulness. The reason God is going to bless those in your life is because of your faithfulness. Be the reason for the blessing.

Bring me a harpist

We pick up the story in 2 Kings 3:14 where Elisha says, “As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, I wouldn’t even bother with you except for my respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah” (NLT). Then in verse 15, out of nowhere, Elisha says, Now bring me someone who can play the harp (NLT). That feels sort of random. The kings are at war. The kings are beginning to panic. There is no water. The soldiers are thirsty. The war animals are thirsty. They are running out of time. And Elisha says, “Hang on, bring me a harpist. I can’t prophesy without some music. God’s message will come to me when the harpist plays, so bring me a harpist. I need to worship first!” Why did he ask for a harpist? They are going to war, and he asked for a harpist. Well, he wanted to worship God. And worship is warfare. In the middle of the war, in the middle of your crisis, one of the best things you can do is worship God.

Are you in a crisis, then worship God. Put yourself in the atmosphere of worship.

Are you financially struggling, then put yourself in the presence of God through worship so you can hear His voice clearly on what to do.
Are you struggling in making a decision about your kids, then worship God so you can hear from God.
Do you feel like your marriage is under attack, then get into the presence of God and worship Him so you can hear what you need to do.
You are struggling with a job decision, worship God.

Look at the rest of verse 15, “While the harp was being played, the power of the Lord came upon Elisha… (NLT). Why do we worship? Why do we worship in a moment when things feel desperate? Why do we lift up our hands and praise God today, and sing like the presence of God is needed in this place?

Because worship changes our perspective. Whenever you take your eyes off of the problems of this world and put your eyes on the provider, the Almighty Lord, suddenly it moves you from a place of desperation to a place of faith. Worship changes our perspective.
Worship invites God’s power. Like Paul and Silas in prison worshiping God at midnight. And the Spirit of the Lord, appears, and suddenly, the chain’s are breaking, the doors are opening, because worship brings in the presence and the power of an Almighty God.
And worship creates space to hear from God. If you engage in worship with your mind and heart, it gives God space to speak to you. It helps to get your mind off of work, off of your marriage, off of your kids, off of your health, off of your fear, and off of your sin because you are thinking about how great and wonderful God is and it’s often in those moments God speaks to your heart and revives your soul and gets you to thinking better and in a place where you can respond to His Word in obedience. And what’s God going to do? He’s going to prompt you. He’s going to guide you. He’s going to lead you. He’s going to comfort you because worship gives room for God to speak.

Focus on what God says, not on what you see

And so in the middle of their crisis, Elisha decides to have an impromptu worship service. And then God speaks through Elisha and tells them to get to work. God gives Elisha a message and tells them what to do. We see this message in verse 16, And [Elisha] said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches’” (NKJV). Some translations will say they are to dig some holes or trenches. Some translations leave this part out and I’m not sure why. But God says, “Make this valley full of ditches.” It’s like God is saying, “You need some water? I’ve got water for you, but I want you to dig some ditches first. I’m going to send you the water, but first, I want you to prepare for the water by digging a ditch. I need you to prepare yourself to receive what I’m about to give you. I need you to create some space for Me to pour by blessing into.”

So, Elisha continues and he prophesies on behalf of God and says this beginning in verse 17, You will see neither wind nor rain, says the Lord, but this valley will be filled with water. You will have plenty for yourselves and your cattle and other animals. But this is only a simple thing for the Lord, for he will make you victorious over the army of Moab! (vs. 17-18, NLT). Let’s digest that for a moment.

You will see neither wind nor rain

God says this, watch what God says, God says, “You will see neither wind nor rain,… but this valley will be filled with water.” We have a tendency to focus on what we see, rather than what God says. They saw their need for water. They saw a dry valley. And on top of that they saw no wind or rain in the horizon. There was no indication that God was meeting their need or about to meet their need. There were no signs or anything they could see that said God was about to show up and provide.

Isn’t that how it often is with us. We see our need. We feel the pain of our need. We are desperate when it comes to our health, our marriage, our kids, or our future. Like the soldiers, we need some water from heaven. We are desperate, but we see nothing. It’s like God has gone to sleep or ignored us or abandoned us.

The valley will be filled with water

But God said, through Elisha, this valley will be filled with water. Your needs will be met. Don’t focus on what you don’t see, but focus on what God says. This valley will be filled with water. I will provide. I will show up. I will be there on time. You can trust Me on this. I am faithful. The valley you are in, I’m about to show up in. I’m about to bring you want you need. I will fill your valley with water.

But this is a simple thing for the Lord

Our problems and needs often seem so difficult and hard. How is my situation going to get any better. I don’t see God at work in it. I don’t see anything coming anytime soon that can bring relief. My problem is very difficult, complex, and overwhelming. It seems impossible. But God says, But this is only a simple thing for [Me]. God says, “To meet your need is easy for me. I’ve got this. Trust me. Don’t give up on me yet. Be patient. I’ve got you covered. Have faith in Me.”

What does faith do and not do? Faith doesn’t deny what you see; faith decides who you will believe. And I believe in the Word of the Lord that never fails. And that’s why whenever I need God to move, whenever I’m hurting, whenever I’m desperate, whenever I’m afraid, I remind myself, this is what I see, but I know what God says. I know what I see, but I know what God says. But I believe what God says.

And so, for someone here, you may see the bills piling up, but God says He “richly gives us all we need” (1 Tim. 6:17, NLT). He will provide. Believe what he says. Faith doesn’t deny what you see; faith decides who you will believe!
When you look in the mirror you may see someone who has made many mistakes and you may say, “I feel horrible about my past mistakes and sins. I feel guilt, and I feel shame.” But God says, “There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1, NLT). If you are in Christ, you are a new creation. The old is gone, the new has come. Your sins have been separated from you as far as the east is from the west. Faith doesn’t deny what you see; faith decides who you will believe!
If you find yourself angry, hurting or afraid, God says He “has not given us a spirit of fear or timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline” (2 Tim. 1:7, NLT). Don’t look at what you see, believe and live in what God says.

Sometimes you have to dig a ditch

Watch what happens. God says, “I’m going to send the water, but before I send the water, I want you to dig a ditch.” In other words, we can say it this way. Only God can send the water, but sometimes he asks you to dig a ditch. Why? Because many times, God wants you to join your faith with His power. Many times, He literally wants us to participate in His miracle or provision. And you can see this over and over again with Jesus.

There was a guy with a crippled hand, and Jesus could have simply said, “Be healed” and walked away. Instead, Jesus said to the man, “Stretch out your hand” (see Matthew 12:13). Jesus wanted the man’s faith and His power to connect. So, the guy stretched out his hand. And he was healed. If he hadn’t stretched out his hand in faith and obedience, he would not have been healed.
There was a guy who hadn’t been able to walk for nearly 40 years, and Jesus could have simply said, “Your healed,” and walked off. But what did Jesus say? Jesus said to the guy, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk” (see John 5:8). Again, Jesus wanted the man’s faith to be joined with His power through an act of obedience.
One more example. A blind guy couldn’t see, and Jesus did something weird. He picks up some dirt, spits in it, makes some mud and puts it on the guy’s eyes. And then what did Jesus tell him to do? “Go wash yourself in the pool of Siloam…. So the man went and washed and came back seeing!” (see John 9:6-7). Sometimes God will want your faith to connect with His power, but it will connect with His power through an act of obedience on your part.

It’s like God is saying, “Show me your faith, and I’ll show you My faithfulness.”

Something very similar is happening with the three kings and their armies. God is telling them, “Show me your faith, and I will show you my faithfulness.” Trust and obey, and you will see my power on display! I’m going to provide, but you have to dig a ditch! It’s in that ditch where I will pour my blessing into. Picture what they are doing here. They are in a dry valley. God says dig a butch of ditches in this valley. Keep in mind they have already gone without water. They are already thirsty and God is telling them to do something that is going to create more thirst and make them more uncomfortable and more miserable. God says, “Trust Me. Do what I say. I want to connect your faith and obedience to My power. Show me your faith and I will show you My faithfulness.”

Here is another thought. They are having to remove some dirt in order to create space for God to fill it with something else. Digging a ditch means removing something so God can replace it with something. Some of you have some dirt in your life that you need to remove so God can fill it with something else. You need to dig a ditch! It’s time to get a shovel and start removing some your stuff so God can fill it with His stuff! But I have a question for you. What ditch do you need to dig to prepare you for what God wants to do? What does digging a ditch look like in your life?

Digging a ditch may look like removing some people from your life who keep dirt in your life. You may need to remove some people so God can fill that space with people who build you up, encourage you, and inspire you to live for God.
Digging a ditch may involve significantly decreasing your time on your phone, wasting hours on Facebook, TikTok, reels, or games. Dig a ditch so God can fill it with productivity or more time with the people in your life.
Digging a ditch may mean cutting up your credit cards, canceling some subscriptions, so God can fill it with financial freedom.
Digging a ditch may mean cleaning out your refrigerator and pantry of all the junk food so you can lose weight, feel better, and have more energy to do what God has called you to do.
Digging a ditch may mean clearing up your calendar so you can spend time in His Word, be a part of that Life Group, that Bible study.
Digging a ditch may mean getting counseling. Counseling for your marriage, counseling for you personally, counseling as a parent, etc.

When you are digging a ditch in your life, you are making space for the provision of God. When you are digging a ditch, you are saying, “I am removing this, so I can have You. I want your provision, your power, your presence.” So dig a ditch! What ditch do you need to dig to prepare yourself to receive what God wants to give you?

Nothing happened

The three kings go back to their armies and tell them to dig ditches. The soldiers started digging until the valley was covered in them. When they were done digging the ditches, do you know what happened next? Nothing! There was no sign of rain, no smell of water, no indication that God was doing anything. They had done what God wanted them to do, but it didn’t seem like God was doing His part. They did their part. They trusted God. They were faithful. They were obedient. But they are still without water. They are still thirsty. They are more thirsty now than they were. They dug the ditches and nothing happened. They sat around the campfires that night and still no water. They went to bed that night and still no water. They got up the next morning expecting the ditches to be filled with water and nothing.

The God of Suddenly

Then we come to verse 20 which says, The next day at about the time when the morning sacrifice was offered, water suddenly appeared! It was flowing from the direction of Edom, and soon there was water everywhere (NLT). Let’s not move too fast through all this.

The soldiers get up and we are told that the “morning sacrifice was [being] offered.” They were worshipping God. God hadn’t provided, but they were still sacrificing to God, they were still looking to God. He hadn’t provided, but they were still praising Him. While you are waiting, are you worshipping? While you are being patient with God, are you praising God? You have dug the ditch, you have been obedient, you have done what God wanted you to do… now it’s time to worship and wait.
We are told that while they were sacrificing to God, “water suddenly appeared!” The day before they dug and dug and dug ditch after ditch after ditch and nothing happened. As it got dark, nothing happened. They sat around campfires that night, and nothing still happened. They went to sleep, and nothing happened. They got up the next morning hoping to find water in the ditches and nothing happened. So, they started offering sacrifices to the Lord and nothing was happening. And then water suddenly appeared! They dug the ditches and waited and waited and waited and then God suddenly provides, because we serve a God of suddenly. When you dig faithfully, God can fill suddenly. When you pray consistently, God can answer suddenly. When you share the gospel faithfully, God can save someone suddenly. When you are obedient, God can bless suddenly. When you are faithful, God can fill suddenly.

I want to talk to someone today who is in the middle of a dry valley. You are hurting and you are desperate, and you are thirsty and you haven’t seen the rain. Your greatest need can become a gift when it drives you to depend on God. Put the shovel into the ground to work and your hands in the air to worship. And when you dig and when you worship, God will meet you in the drier places. And when you trust God faithfully, He will show up suddenly. Suddenly. Suddenly. God’s Word says, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Gal. 6:9, NIV). Our God is a God of suddenly!

Suddenly, the chains will break.
Suddenly, anxiety lifts.
Suddenly, a relationship is healed and restored.
Suddenly that door opens you have been waiting on.

We serve a God of suddenly. What felt impossible became possible, because all things are possible with our good God.

And then one day, when the waters flowing, when you are blessed, and other people look on and go, “Well, that was easy for you.” You can just smile and think, “Well, you didn’t see me digging when there was no water, you didn’t see me worshiping when the ground was dry, you didn’t see me waiting when there was no rain. You didn’t seem me sacrificing when I was hurting.”

They are not going to see you on your knees desperate for God. They are not going to know the acts of obedience you did or the sacrifices you made or the work you did or the changes you made because God said to dig a ditch, but they will know when God shows up, and you can just tell them with a smile on your face, “To the glory of God, when I dug it, he filled it.” And so until that day, if the ground is dry, just keep on digging, keep on worshipping. Because what’s empty today, God can fill tomorrow. And what looks impossible to you is simple for him. He is the God who meets you in dry places.

Conclusion

I want to ask you a question, are you willing to ask God, “What ditch do you want me to dig to prepare me for what you want to do?” What ditch do you need to dig? What step of faith do you need to make so your faith can join God’s faithfulness? “God, give us the faith to dig a ditch when its dry and when it makes no sense. Help us to believe that if we dig it, you will fill it.”

A word to the unbeliever

Let me talk to those who don’t know Jesus for a moment. It is time to stop pretending like you are okay with God. Some of you, you believe in Him, but you do not know Him. You grew up around him, but you do not know him. Some of you, it’s obvious, you are living for yourself, you are living for your own sinful desires, you do not know him, but you are getting tired of your life. You are getting desperate. Your sin has cost you.

It’s time to dig a ditch. What does it mean? It’s time to turn to Jesus, confess your sins to Him, and receive Him as the Lord of your life.

God sent His Son, Jesus, who lived a sinless life and who gave His life on the cross for you. He died for your sin, so that you wouldn’t have too. But you need to place your faith in Him for your salvation. If you confess your sins to Him, God’s Word says, “God is faithful and just to forgive your sins and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness.” Dig the ditch. Confess your sins. Turn to Jesus. Turn away from yourself. Turn away from your sin. Turn toward Jesus. Dig the ditch.

When you call on Him, He will hear your prayer. He will forgive your sins. He will make you brand new. Ditch a ditch. Call on Him. Then suddenly your sins will be forgiven. Suddenly you are given a new heart. Suddenly you are a new creation. Suddenly you are a part of God’s family. Suddenly! Suddenly you are saved! Suddenly you are born again! Suddenly you are redeemed! Suddenly, God’s living water fills your ditch, fills your life.

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