Let us imagine what that morning must have been like.

They wake up in the hill country of Samaria, in the small town of Dothan. The servant, out on an early morning errand, is stunned by the sight of chariots and foot soldiers everywhere. The enemy has moved into place under the cover of darkness. These are the troops of the king of Aram, who has been attempting raids on towns in Samaria, trying to break the country bit by bit.

The servant runs back home to report the situation to Elisha. “Sir, what will we do?” Dothan is under siege. It is not clear if Elisha and his servant know that these soldiers are here to capture Elisha, or if they simply assume that the enemy is attacking the town, as it has tried to do with other towns. They do know, though, that the enemy forces are powerful, they are everywhere, and there is no apparent way of escape. It looks like they’re doomed to capture or destruction.

“What will we do?”

Elisha is not afraid. “We have more on our side than they have!” he declares.

And then he prays. Not for God to come and help them. No, he prays for the young man. He asks God to open the young servant’s eyes to see the truth of their situation. “And let him see!”

The LORD opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire (2 Kings 6:17 NLT).

Oh, Lord, open our eyes and let us see!

Let us see your constant watch over us. Scripture holds so many reassurances that the eyes of the Lord are constantly on those who rely on His love and His ears are always open to our prayers. I just discovered another one recently; 2 Chronicles 16:9 says the Lord is continually looking throughout the earth, looking for hearts devoted to Him so that He can strengthen them. He is there, constantly.

Let us see the power with which you protect us and provide for us. Chariots of fire? Who knows? Are there angels fighting for us in the spiritual realm? We have Scriptures that would indicate this is happening. But God also sends his “angels” in human form—people sent into our lives at just the right time for the purpose of strengthening, encouraging, teaching, and supporting us. They are—just like heavenly angels—special representatives sent by God for a certain purpose. Prayer warriors might very well be, in God’s eyes, driving chariots of fire into the thick of the battle. (I like that image.)

Psalm 18 is a great picture of God tearing open the heavens and coming down Himself to rescue one who depended on His help. God has done that for you and me! He has torn open heaven, and He not only came down to rescue us but He comes to live with us. God comes to abide with us. We abide in Him. He comes and makes His home with us and we share a life together. He tore the heavens open one night in Bethlehem, coming to rescue us and to share His life and kingdom and power with us.

We cannot despair, even when the situation looks grim to our blind eyes. We cannot feel helpless or hopeless when faced with enemies so strong they seem unbeatable. We cannot, because Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid of any trouble you face in the world. Trust me.”

What would this day look like if we could see clearly the chariots of fire surrounding us? What if we could have just a taste, one wee sip, of the might of His power at work in our lives?

Today, I pray for you and for me—not for His help in what we face or victory in our battles, but I pray: Lord, open our eyes and let us see!