March 24

2 Kings 4:18 - 37

Link to Bible verses: 2 Kings 4

Stewardship/Partnership: treat all as vessels of the altar

I believe grief is one of the most sacred human experiences. I recently heard someone say, “When someone shares an emotion with you, you are on sacred ground.” This makes sense to me, and grief seems to bring us to some of the most holy ground we encounter as humans. Grief is universal, simultaneously ordinary and extraordinary, and therefore paradoxical. I believe all paradoxes are sacred enigmas.

The Shunammite woman of this story sees Elisha as a holy man and treats him accordingly. She is a steward of his time in her home, and she clearly sees this as sacred work. Elisha responds in kind with sacred work, and the woman bears a son. There seems to be a partnership here: two people recognizing the sacredness and sacred acts of the other. They seem to feed each other in the best of ways, and they seem unknowingly to be creating a foundation of stewardship upon which they draw when unimaginable grief hits.

The trust and tenderness in the relationship between the Shunammite woman and Elisha is palpable. Care—sacred care and tending—come through loudly. Their relationship evinces a world we can create—or at least work toward—when we practice stewardship in partnership with others, when we treat and welcome all as sacred vessels.

Thank you to Linda Land-Closson for writing our 2026 Lenten Devotions.