In our mundane routines, we discover what we really want

This Sunday’s readings offer a reflection on the curious life of the prophet Elisha. In the mundane rhythms of his existence, we can find the means to discover our core desire. Elisha is the successor of the great prophet Elijah and the accounts of both men are told in detail in the Books of Kings. He is one of many prophets in the Scriptures who serve as God’s mouthpiece and perform mighty deeds in God’s name. Prophets also communicate God’s wisdom, and display their own skill in creative interpretations of the Word of God.   

An unnamed woman of influence from the town of Shunem is moved to help this prophet in a rather domestic manner. “Let us arrange a little room on the roof,” she said, “and furnish it for him with a bed, table, chair, and lamp, so that when he comes to us he can stay there” (2 Kgs 4:10). Elisha is a prophet of significance in the biblical tradition. Early Christian writers even considered Elisha a “type” or prefiguring of Jesus. A person of such prominence nevertheless requires the humble tools common to any domestic setting: a bed, a table, a chair and a lamp.

Readers of this Sunday’s passages are encouraged to tap into deep places of desire.

These household necessities reflect the need for rest and place to read and think. Elisha, while tired from his travels and spiritual quests, seeks the meaning of his life among the items of his room, especially the table, chair and lamp. These items describe a place to pray and meditate on the Scriptures. This sounds more like the setting of a rabbinic scholar than one for a mighty prophet. This space prepared for Elisha is not only welcomed by the holy man, but it moves him to offer a great reward to his host. “Can something be done for her?” asks Elisha (2 Kgs 4:14). Indeed, her gift is great because she understood what the holy man needed most, a place to contemplate and rest in the Word of God. Elisha, likewise, recognized what this woman needed most, to hold a baby son within a year’s time.

This exchange of gifts between the woman and Elisha highlights those core desires that we carry. In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus reminds his disciples that love for him must come from the deepest place. “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me” (Mt 10:38). Within discipleship, the “cross” involves the effort made to remove any distraction that pulls away from the desire to follow Christ. This effort takes place not only in one’s extreme hardships, but more so in the quotidian interactions of mundane life like remembering to pray at mealtime.

Readers of this Sunday’s passages are encouraged to tap into deep places of desire. For the woman of wealth from Shunem, this meant a baby son. For Elisha, this meant the Word of God. For the disciples, this deepest love is found in Jesus. May this path always turn disciples back to a place that is lifegiving and back to Christ. “Whoever loses his life for my sake,” says Jesus, “will find it” (Mt 10:39).