When Faith Holds on Before the Miracle - iBelieve Truth: A Devotional for Women - March 17, 2026
“The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers. He said to his father, “My head! My head!”His father told a servant, “Carry him to his mother.” After the servant had lifted him and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died. She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out (2 Kings 4:19-21; Read 2 Kings 4:18-37 for context).
Have you ever received news that knocked the breath out of you? Maybe it was a diagnosis. The loss of a loved one. A moment where everything changed in a matter of seconds?
For me, this moment was May of 2019. I’d just graduated from college, happy and healthy. And besides some stress, life was good. I was going to start my life. But then, I got incredibly sick. So sick that I spent nearly every week at the ER for undiagnosable stomach pain. When I finally received 10+ physical and mental diagnoses, I felt paralyzed. My life was changed and flipped upside down. And that’s what I suspect the woman in 2 Kings 4:18-37 felt.
In Scripture, this unnamed woman experiences a moment like this. Her son complains of a headache, but then suddenly collapses in her arms and dies. I can’t imagine witnessing this type of atrocity. And yet, what she does next reveals a faith that refuses to give up or throw in the towel when times are hard, when you’re still waiting on the miracle to arrive.
When we face difficult things in life, sometimes they come suddenly. For this woman, her son is out with her husband in the fields working. But suddenly, he cries out about having a headache. By noon, the boy dies in her arms.
For us today, pain often arrives without warning. And frankly, faith doesn’t mean we’re protected from heartbreak or loss. Even people God has blessed and are with still experience loss. Being a Christian doesn’t free us from this suffering. But friends, the presence of pain doesn’t mean the absence of God. And while we may not always understand what He does when, we can trust His purpose and plan beyond what the human eye can see.
Instead of staying stuck in her grief, this woman lays her child on Elisha’s (the man of God) bed, shuts the door, and immediately prepares to find him. She doesn’t stay frozen. She doesn’t spread panic. She even tells her husband that “everything is alright.” Why? Because she knew where to go: Straight to the place where she believed God’s help could be found. And we can do the same.
Today, when life falls apart and tragedy strikes, you and I have a choice. We can grieve, yes. And it’s important that we do. But then, where do we run? Fear? Control? Social media? Or God? This isn’t acting like everything is hunky dory when it isn’t. No, it's active, authentic, faith—moving toward God, even before the answer appears.
This woman’s faith teaches us that we don’t need to deny reality; we can trust before the miracle arrives. Faith sometimes sounds like saying, “It will be okay,” even when you cannot yet see it. It’s “everything will be okay, even if not everything is okay right now.”
When the woman reaches Elisha, she grabs him and refuses to leave without him. She refused to let go of hope, and this is a beautiful illustration of persistent, steadfast faith. Again, she’s not pretending that everything is fine. No, she pours out her pain. But she also believes that God can move. She’s seen it and still believes.
Faith isn’t pretending we’re okay; it’s holding on to God even when we’re not.
If you read the rest of the story, Elisha goes back, prays, and restores the boy’s life. The mom falls at Elisha’s feet in gratitude, and God had the final word (not death). I know that not everyone’s story has this kind of ending. I wish it did. But while I can’t predict what will happen in your story, I do know that God knows best, even when we fail to comprehend it.
Faith runs toward God in crisis, holds on before the miracle arrives, and trusts even when the outcome is uncertain. It’s whispering, “It will be all right,” even when the proof hasn’t yet come.
- Where do you tend to run first when life falls apart?
- Is there a situation where you need to bring your pain to God?
- What would it look like to hold onto hope today?
Dear Jesus, when life feels overwhelming and tragedy strikes, help me to know that you are near. Help me run to you even when you seem far away. Give me the faith that this woman had for her son, and to hold onto you and your goodness, no matter the outcome. We thank you, praise you, and love you, Lord. Amen.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Jacob Wackerhausen
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