TRY A DIFFERENT APPROACH

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There was a king of Israel named Ahaziah, who ruled from Samaria. He fell through the latticework of an upper room in his palace and was seriously injured. He sent messengers to the temple of Baal-zebub to ask whether he would recover. But the angel of the Lord told Elijah to go and confront the messengers and ask them, “Is there no God in Israel?” Why travel far to seek answers from a false god when the true God was in Israel? Because of Ahaziah’s approach, the answer to his question was that he would die.

So the messengers returned to the king and told him that a man had met them and instructed them to come back with the message that he would die. The king wanted to know who this man was, and from their description, he knew it was Elijah. So he sent an army captain with fifty soldiers to arrest him. They found Elijah sitting on top of a hill. When the captain arrived, he said to Elijah that the king had commanded him to come down and go with them to the king. But Elijah replied to the captain, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and killed them all.

So the king sent another captain with fifty men. The same conversation took place between the captain and Elijah, and once again, fire came down from heaven and killed them all. Once more, the king sent a third captain with fifty men. But this time, the captain went up the hill and fell to his knees before Elijah. He pleaded with him, “O man of God, please spare my life and the lives of these fifty servants. See how fire came down from heaven and destroyed the first two groups. But now please spare my life!” Then the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him, and don’t be afraid of him.” So Elijah got up and went with him to the king (2 Kings 1:2–15 NLT). Try a different approach.

There are two things I want to point out from this passage.

1. The Decisions of Leaders Affect Those Who Follow Them

A recurring theme throughout Scripture is that the actions of leaders have consequences for the people under their authority. Whether it is kings, priests, judges, or military commanders, their decisions often impact many others. We see this principle in Ahaziah's story. The king's hostility toward God's prophet led to the deaths of over one hundred men. The captains were carrying out the king's orders, yet they became caught up in the consequences of his decisions. The same principle remains true today. The choices of presidents, business leaders, pastors, parents, managers, and community leaders affect countless people. Good leadership can bring protection, growth, and blessing. Poor leadership can bring hardship and destruction. This is why we should be careful about whom we choose to follow. And when we find ourselves under leaders who lack wisdom, one of the most powerful things we can do is pray for them. Their decisions can influence the direction of our lives, whether positively or negatively.

2. Recognising When A New Approach is Needed.

The third captain teaches a valuable lesson about learning from experience. The first captain may not have known what would happen. The second captain, however, had evidence that the first approach had failed terribly. Yet he repeated the same behaviour and received the same outcome. As a young person, I heard this phrase a lot: "The first fool is not a fool. The second fool is not a fool. The third fool is a fool." Although the actual saying is, "The first fool is not a fool. The second fool is the proper fool." The version I learned even gave you a second chance to be a fool, but by the third time, no way. Whichever version you use, the lesson is the same: learn from experience. The second captain saw what had happened to the first group and still approached Elijah in the same way. The third captain, however, observed the pattern and chose differently. He recognized that pride and force were not working. Instead of demanding, he humbled himself. Instead of commanding, he pleaded. Instead of relying on authority, he showed respect.

His different approach produced a different result. Many people remain stuck because they keep repeating the same actions while hoping circumstances will change. But wisdom asks, "What can I learn from what has already happened?" Sometimes the breakthrough is not in trying harder but in approaching the situation differently. The third captain understood this. He saw what had destroyed others and decided not to repeat their mistake. As the saying goes, experience is only valuable if we learn from it. Mistakes may be understandable once. Repeating them after the lesson has been revealed is where danger lies. Sometimes growth begins with a simple question: "If this approach is not working, what would happen if I tried a different one?" The third captain lived because he was humble enough to ask that question. I pray that God helps us through situations of life and help us apply wisdom in times where it is needed, in Jesus name, Amen.