In 2 Kings 8, we have a story of the returned blessing. The Shunammite woman knows that Elisha is a man of God and offers him hospitality whenever he is passing by.

She convinces her husband that they should prepare a guest room for him. Elisha uses their guest room and gives them the gift of a son.

Elisha warns them that the Lord was sending a seven-year famine on the land of Israel and that they should get out. They listened. In 2 Kings 8, the woman is returning to Israel and asking for her land back.

The Lord is in control over all and, while He gives us free will and doesn’t control us like puppets, He can assure His good will is carried out when it comes to His children.

He has arranged that at just the moment the king is hearing the story about the Shunammite’s son being raised from the dead, she walks in with her son.

The king, though not honoring to God in his life, still has some fear of the Lord. He honors the woman that Elisha honored.

This woman wanted to honor and care for the man of God. She didn’t ask for anything in return. She had an abundance returned to her.

We don’t give or serve God or do good works for anything in return. We freely give because we were freely given to.

Nothing we have is our own. It’s all a gift from God and should be offered back to Him for His purposes.

But there is a Biblical principle of God returning the blessing, of reaping what we sow. God says we’ll receive multiplied back to us those things (and people) we give up for the gospel, for His sake.

If we let go of those things we desire, or even the things we think we need for His sake, for His honor, for love of Him, He will multiply them back to us.

That doesn’t mean we get rich. That means a harvest of righteousness, a harvest of joy, a harvest of fruit from our labors.

God blesses His people. He pays His workers. He honors His saints. He sees your work and has His reward with Him.