Word for the day by Christian Education Forum
Compassionate Shepherding: Response to Pain and Loss
Bible Reading: 2 Kings 4:27-37
Key Verse: “When she came to him, he said, “Take your son.” 2 Kings 4:36
DEVOTION
In 2 Kings 4:27–37, we encounter the Shunammite woman, who had received the miraculous gift of a son through the prophet Elisha, now finds herself grieving that very gift taken away. Her pain is real. Her sorrow is raw. But it’s what happens next that gives us a profound picture of how God responds to human suffering - not with detachment, but with compassionate shepherding. Here we see, not only the resurrection of a child - but the resurrection of hope, the compassionate heart of God, and the invitation to be shepherds of grace in a world full of pain.
Compassionate shepherding begins with presence, not answers
When the Shunammite woman approaches Elisha at Mount Carmel, she collapses at his feet in grief. Gehazi, Elisha’s servant, tries to push her away - but Elisha stops him (27). He doesn’t rush to fix her pain with platitudes. Instead, he makes room for her sorrow. This is the first act of compassionate shepherding: being fully present in someone’s pain without rushing to provide an answer. Elisha acknowledges her distress, and he doesn’t try to minimize it. In this way, he reflects the heart of God - who is “near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18).
In our own lives, how often do we feel pressure to “fix” someone’s sorrow with the right words? Yet sometimes, the most Christ-like thing we can do is to sit with someone, let them weep, and affirm that their pain is seen and valid. What our friends, churches, and communities need, are not just spiritual mechanics but shepherds with tears in their eyes - people willing to walk slowly through the valley with others, without needing to rush to the mountaintop.
Compassionate shepherding leads us to persistent, prayerful action
After witnessing the woman’s anguish, Elisha doesn’t stop at empathy - he moves toward action. He travels back with her to her home and enters the room where the child’s body lies. He prays, stretches himself out on the child, and when there is no immediate result, he gets up and paces the house (v. 35). He then returns, stretches himself out again - and finally, the child sneezes seven times and opens his eyes. This is more than a story of physical resurrection. It is a picture of compassion that refuses to give up. Elisha embodies a shepherding heart that is deeply engaged, spiritually alert, and persistent. He doesn’t walk away from a hard situation when the outcome is uncertain. He stays. He prays. He wrestles in faith.
We need that kind of perseverance today - not just in public ministry but in our personal lives. Sometimes, compassionate shepherding means choosing to pray for the friend who keeps pulling away. It means mentoring someone through addiction, grief, or failure without seeing overnight results. It means being committed to people not because it’s easy, but because Christ was committed to us when we were still broken and lost. Jesus’s parable of lost sheep (Luke 15) reveals the heart of a true shepherd - not just to feel compassion, but to act with love, courage, and relentless faith. And in Elisha’s actions, we see the foreshadowing ministry of Christ.
The Shunammite woman receives her son back - not just alive, but as a living testimony to the power and compassion of God. In a world that is aching in silence, drowning in hidden grief, and skeptical of superficial hope, we are called to be more than spectators - we are called to be compassionate shepherds. We are commissioned to live lives of holy empathy and tenacious faith, knowing that God is still in the business of resurrection.