2Kings 4:23 NKJV | “So he said, ‘Why are you going to him today? It is neither the New Moon nor Sabbath.’ And she said, ‘It is well.’“

There are certain biblical characters that I respect and admire a lot. The Shunammite woman is one of them. Here’s the backstory to the above scripture. The prophet, Elisha, had prayed for her and she gave birth to a son miraculously. One day, after the child had grown, he suddenly developed a headache and later died in his mother’s arms.

Immediately, she hurried off to fetch Elisha the prophet. When her husband tried to find out why, she simply said, ‘It is well.’ She didn’t even tell her husband that the child was dead. You would think she would have rent the air with her screams and drawn both her husband and neighbours to her side. But she did none of that. Why? Because she wasn’t interested in sympathy. She wanted solutions. And she knew her solution lay with Elisha the prophet.

Instead of venting her emotion and airing her feelings like most of us would do — myself included — she aimed straight for her solution. She made no room for sympathy. So I ask you today: do you want sympathy or do you want God-given solutions?