God will let you lose something valuable only to make you realize that God is more valuable. It may be your job. It may be a friendship. It may be your health. But God’s purpose is not to hurt you but to make you realize that He is more important.

There was a gentile woman who was very hospitable to the prophet of God named Elisha. (2 Kings 4). I don’t believe she did it to get something out of him. But the prophet wanted to do something nice for her and promised her a son, seeing that she was old and barren. A year later, that son is born. I’m sure she was ecstatic! But a few years later, that son dies. Now this woman is a mess and goes to the prophet for help. The prophet comes and through a certain strange ritual, restores him back to life and gives him back to his mother.

If you are seeing this from the perspective of the woman, here’s what’s going on. She was god-fearing. And as a reward, God grants her a son which she never even dreamed about. But that son is taken away from her. But she gets him back in a short time.

It’s a head scratcher. Why is this story in the Bible? What is the point? What was accomplished? The point is that this woman’s faith was strengthened. And also for us who are readers that God can and will take something valuable from us to show Himself to be infinitely more valuable.

The prophet Elisha had to try something desperate to bring this child back. Jesus, later on, simply speaks to a child and she is revived. Someone infinitely more powerful than Elisha is with us and in us! Would you hold onto Him so tightly that everything else is loose by comparison?

PH