Life’s Lessons Through the Garden 3

Tackle the Surprises that Show Up

Welcome to Life’s Lessons through the Garden. I’m Minister Adrianne Watson. This is lesson 3 of a 10 part, once a month, live, online study to help you grow spiritually in 2026.

During the weeks in between the livestream sessions, I’ll drop a new 15 minute online segment that you can use to study for the week. Each segment will have follow up questions and other scripture references for more in-depth study. Make sure you sign up for emails to receive the weekly sessions, subscribe to my blog, and checkout the gardening page for tips and videos.

You can access all of these segments on my YouTube Channel or on my website. Make sure that you sign up for updates, links and gardening tips on my website.

Just so you know, I’ll be teaching these lessons from the Christian Standard Bible, but feel free to use your translation of choice to follow along.

Get ready to be challenged and changed. Get ready to grow in new soil and reap a new harvest as we enter into “The Garden.”

Play Garden music and intro slide

Prayer:

Father we thank you for this day and for this study. Open our minds and our hearts so that we might be able to grow into a newness of life this year. In Jesus name, Amen.

Have you ever had a day begin normally and end in a way you never saw coming? A surprise bill. An unexpected loss. A sudden change in plans. A door that slammed shut, or one that opened too quickly.

Life rarely asks our permission before surprising us. Some surprises delight us, but others shake us. And it’s the unwelcome ones that tend to leave us feeling surrounded, outnumbered, or even caught off guard.

When I think of my garden, there are mornings I step outside imagining blooms and progress, and instead I find a plant uprooted by a storm, or leaves chewed through overnight, or a weed taller than everything else I’ve planted. The garden constantly reminds me that life can change quickly, and not always in the ways that we expect.

In 2 Kings 6, a young servant woke up expecting a normal day, but instead found his entire city encircled by an enemy army. This was a surprise he never asked for. A moment that pushed him to fear: “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?”

And yet, in this story, God teaches us how to tackle the surprises that show up, not by pretending they aren’t scary, but by opening our eyes to His presence and protection.

2 Kings 6:8–17 “When the king of Aram was waging war against Israel, he conferred with his servants, “My camp will be at such and such a place.” But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel: “Be careful passing by this place, for the Arameans are going down there.” Consequently, the king of Israel sent word to the place the man of God had told him about. The man of God repeatedly warned the king, so the king would be on his guard. The king of Aram was enraged because of this matter, and he called his servants and demanded of them, “Tell me, which one of us is for the king of Israel?” One of his servants said, “No one, my lord the king. Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel even the words you speak in your bedroom.” So the king said, “Go and see where he is, so I can send men to capture him.” When he was told, “Elisha is in Dothan,” he sent horses, chariots, and a massive army there. They went by night and surrounded the city. When the servant of the man of God got up early and went out, he discovered an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. So he asked Elisha, “Oh, my master, what are we to do?” Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, please open his eyes and let him see.” So the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

Israel was locked in conflict with Aram which is modern day Syria. Aram was known for their swift surprise raids. They specialized in sending elite units by night to surround the town before sunrise. Their calvary and chariots were considered some of the best in the ancient Near East.

Aram’s king repeatedly set traps for Israel, but God kept revealing the enemy’s plans to the Prophet Elisha. In fact, God was revealing intelligence about King Aram’s war strategies, or as we would call it today, war espionage. Except that the information was coming from God Himself Elisha’s insight was so accurate that the King of Aram thought that Israel must have had a mole or spy in his own bedroom.

Furious, the king sent his military force consisting of horses, chariots, and soldiers to capture Elisha by surprise. In other words, the King of Aram sent his death squad specifically to capture and kill the Prophet Elisha. Taking out Elisha ment crippling Israel’s spiritual and strategic defense system. Elisha wasn’t just a spiritual leader, he was Israel’s national security asset.

They arrived at night, surrounding the city of Dothan. The city of Dothan sat on a major trade route in the hill country of Samaria. It was surrounded by natural valleys which was a perfect terrain for an ambush or siege. It was a coordinated, strategic, yet unexpected attack.

When the servant wakes up, he sees the enemy encircling them, and then he panics. From any vantage point, the enemy could be seen closing in around the city.

But what he thought was a hopeless surprise was actually a setup for God to reveal a greater reality.

This mirrors our lives: Surprises show up but so does God.

And throughout Scripture there are many examples of stories that had moments of surprise. For example, when the children of Israel were fleeing Pharoah and his army, they were surprised by the Red Sea in front of them and God parting the sea so that they could walk on dry land.

I’m sure that Daniel was surprised, or even blindsided when he was thrown into a lion’s den for praying to God.

The Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus was surprised by the angel Gabriel when he came to inform her that she would carry and birth the Messiah.

There are countless stories of surprise, but they all have one thing in common. God shows up even when they don’t see Him coming.

And just like us, the people in Scripture didn’t get advance notice. Their surprises hit suddenly. Their fears rose instantly. And in 2 Kings 6, we meet a young servant who steps into the morning light to face the shock he never saw coming.

POINT 1: THE SHOCK WE SEE

2 Kings 6:15“When the servant of the man of God got up early and went out, he discovered an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. So he asked Elisha, “Oh, my master, what are we to do?”

The servant wakes up to a problem that he didn’t create and one that he didn’t anticipate. That’s how many of our surprises come to us.

It’s like checking your garden expecting blossoms and instead discovering: • your plants were eaten overnight, • a strange fungus is on the soil, • a storm broke the stems of your plants.

You weren’t irresponsible. The surprise just showed up.

The servant immediately reacts: “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?”

This is the language of shock, the gut reaction to an unexpected difficulty.

Sieges were terrifying. They cut off food supplies, water access and escape routes. Even the threat of a siege created panic. When the servant saw the army, he knew what was coming.

In our lives today, we see the problem, the pressure, and the panic.

What we don’t see yet is the presence of God.

What do you do when a surprise hits?

Do you acknowledge your fear? Do you pause before reacting? Remember that your surprises don’t surprise God.

You might be blindsided but God never is.

That reminds me of the time when I worked for Life Time Fitness. I had been promoted to the job of Personal Training Department Head, but the company had sent me to train for the position a year earlier. So since the job opening didn’t happen for a year, I basically forgot most of the training. As a result, I made a lot of mistakes in my new role. To make matters worse, the location wasn’t performing well financially when I took it over because many of the revenue generating staff relocated to a new location that had just opened.

So one day when it was time for me to have my one-on-one with my boss, the Regional Director, the Sr. District manager was also sitting in his office. I thought that was strange for him to be there. Then the Sr. District manager basically said that I had 30 days to turn the location around to net positive. They were placing me on a performance improvement plan also known as a PIP. If that location didn’t hit our revenue goal during my 30-day probationary period, I would be fired.

The army that surrounded me wasn’t military. It was any army of pressure, expectation, and threat of my employment. That PIP was the corporate equivalent of an enemy siege: Produce or Perish. My initial response was mirrored with the Prophet Elisha’s response: “On no, what am I going to do?”

Talking about being blind sided… but God.

The surprise may pop up like an unexpected pest in the garden, but God always has something growing underneath the soil of our circumstances. So after the shock hits, we look next for the support God sends.

POINT 2: THE SUPPORT GOD SENDS

2 Kings 6:16 “Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.””

Before the servant saw anything change, Elisha spoke truth into his fear. You see, the Prophet Elisha had witnessed his mentor, the Prophet Elijah being surrounded by heavenly chariots when he was taken up to God in 2 Kings 2:11-12.

So Elisha wasn’t panicking, he had seen this movie before. He had a history with God. Elisha knew that God would send His protection even when no one else could perceive it. Or as Romans 8:31 says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

In Israel’s worldview, their battles were not just physical but spiritual. Exodus 15:3 says, “The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name.” So why wouldn’t Elisha be confident that God would protect him. He trusted the invisible army more than the visible one.

God had already sent heavenly forces of fiery chariots and angelic armies to protect His servants. The servant didn’t see them, but that didn’t make them any less real.

This helps us to see that even when there’s a surprise that surrounds you, you are already surrounded by God.

And surprises trigger the “fight, flight, or freeze” response.

And even in my story at LifeTime Fitness, God didn’t remove the pressure immediately. Initially, I froze. I cried. But later, I went into flight mode and I thought about quitting. But quitting without another job to go to wasn’t the answer. Lastly, I chose to fight. I would prove them wrong.

I believe because I chose not to back down that God sent people to surround me, to encourage me, and to work with me. It was if God whispered to my heart the same thing Elisha said to the servant: “Don’t be afraid…those who are with you outnumber those who are with them.”

That’s when Isaiah 54:17 came to mind that says, “No weapon formed against you will succeed.”

Sometimes God sends human support or divine support. Sometimes God sends both and one may appear before the other.

My team refused to let me fail. They over-performed, they worked longer hours. God used them as my “army”. And this unseen spiritual support strengthened my heart in those 30 days.

And I’m reminded of how Moses had Aaron, David had Jonathan, Paul had Barnabas, Silas and Timothy. I had my assistant manager and my general manager who both told me that they believed in me.

Just like Elisha’s servant didn’t know help was already present, I didn’t know that God was already working through my team.

Even in a stressed garden, unseen helpers are at work. The beneficial insects are fighting for your plants. The rich nutrients break down the soil, the deep roots anchor the plant against the wind.

Help is present, even when its invisible.

When you are facing something unexpected, do you trust that God has already arranged your support? Do you believe that God is working before you even understand how He’s working?

You have to remind yourself that you are not alone in this because God’s provision often precedes our awareness.

Elisha doesn’t just tell the servant help is there. He prays that the servant will actually see it. Because sometimes the greatest miracle isn’t God changing the situation—it’s God changing our perspective. And that brings us to The Sight God Supplies.

Point 3: The Sight God Supplies

2 Kings 6:17 “Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, please open his eyes and let him see.” So the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

In the Jewish culture, the term “to see” which in Hebrew is pronounced “Ra-ah”, was not just a term of vision but also spiritual understanding, often meaning to perceive spiritually. So when Elisha prayed that God would open the servant’s eyes, he wasn’t fixing the servant’s eyesight, he was expanding his worldview.

This is the turning point in the passage. 2 Kings 6:17 “So the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

It was not the removal of the enemy army, but the opening of the servant’s eyes to see God’s protection. When God opens his eyes, the servant see the horses of fire, the chariots of fire, and an angelic army surrounding Elisha.

You see, the servant had information about the enemy’s army.. But he needed revelation to see God’s army.

Information tells you what’s happening. Revelation tells you what God is doing about it.

The phrase “chariots of fire” refers to God’s heavenly armies, which was the hosts of heaven. And God is often referred to as Yahweh Sabaoth, meaning the Lord of Hosts. He is the commander of the angelic forces. The Israelites believed that angels were real beings engaged in real battles on behalf of God’s people.

2 Kings 6:17 “So the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” The fire also represented God’s power and purity. The children of Israel wandered in the desert with a pillar of fire at night and a cloud by day in Exodus chapter 3. The chariots of fire meant God wasn’t just present, He’s present in power.

The enemy didn’t disappear, the servant’s perspective changed. And this is how we can tackle surprises. We don’t always have the option of eliminating surprises, but we can see that God is bigger than them. And many times, God works on our own perspective before He works on the problem.

The same happens in gardening. So much happens beneath the surface. The roots strengthen out of sight, there are new buds that form before they emerge, and the seeds germinate underground before they break through.

Just because you can’t see the growth doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

And that’s exactly what was happening to me at LifeTime Fitness. After I watched how my staff rallied and God provided support, I didn’t just see the numbers improve, I saw God’s hand at work. I didn’t just see teamwork happing, I was walking in divine favor. God wasn’t just helping me keep my job, He was preparing me for a promotion. He was preparing me to work through adversity, and the surprises that pop up.

Just like the servant, God opened my eyes, not only to see what He was doing externally, but also to see what He was forming internally inside of me, that is, courage, leadership and trust.

Deuteronomy 20:1 ““When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and an army larger than yours, do not be afraid of them, for the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you.”

And the Lord my God was with me at LifeTime Fitness and He is with you today.

So when surprises come, we should pray, “Lord, open my eyes.” And ask God to help you see what He’s doing, how He’s protecting you and where He’s working beneath the surface.

And once God opens our eyes, once He gives us spiritual sight in the midst of the surprises, the story doesn’t end there. The servant didn’t just see differently. He lived differently because of what he saw. And that brings us to where God wants to take you next. Not just a clearer vision, but deeper trust in Him. So as I move toward the close of this study, let me bring this home to where you and I live today.

Conclusion

A few years ago I planted a plant that I thought was dying. Every morning that I looked at it, it looked worse, drooping, browning on the leaves, and lifeless. Then one day, while pulling the plant to see what was wrong, I discovered something that I had not seen before. There were strong roots, deep, that were still very much alive.

The plant wasn’t dying, it was struggling to survive. but it wasn’t alone. And once I understood what was happening beneath the surface, I cared for it differently. I watered it more intentionally. I used a different fertilizer on it. I moved it to a better spot in the garden. I protected it. And slowly it came back to life.

That plant taught me something, What looks surrounded above ground may be supported and sustained beneath ground. I just couldn’t see it.

And friends, I believe God wants to say the same thing to you. You might be struggling, but you are not dying. You might be pressed, but you are not crushed. You might be surprised, but you are not alone. God is working beneath the surface of your life. And He is surrounding you with faith and strength that you haven’t fully seen yet.

Now let’s be real. Faith does not deny that the enemy exists, it sees beyond the enemy. God is not caught off guard. He’s always working above us, around us, and beneath the surface, even when we can’t see the evidence.

Life is full of moments that surprise us. Some surprises are small annoyances, but others stop us in our tracks. A medical diagnosis. A relationship that ends abruptly. A financial setback. A child struggling. A job threatened or a job loss. A hope delayed. A dream that seems to slip away overnight.

And like that servant, we walk out into the morning light thinking we know what the day will hold… only to see something surrounding us that we didn’t expect and we wouldn’t have chosen.

But the God of 2 Kings 6 is the same God who stands with you today.

The God who surrounded Elisha is the God who surrounds your family.

The God who opened the servant’s eyes is the God who can open yours.

The God who sent an army of fire is the God who sends support, strength, people, courage, and provision into your life, often before you even know you’ll need it.

You may feel surrounded but you are surrounded by God. Let Him open your eyes. Let Him lift your chin. Let Him remind you that you are never fighting alone. You don’t have to run, hide, or fear the surprises that show up in the morning. Because the God who is with you is always more powerful than the thing that stands against you.

You may feel surrounded by surprises today, but the truth is, you are surrounded by God.

Before we pray, I want to bring this even closer to home. If you were sitting across from me at a table sharing your story, I would ask you this:

“What surprise has shown up in your life recently… and how are you interpreting it?”

Because the story in 2 Kings 6 teaches us something powerful: The enemy isn’t the surprise. The real battle is how we see the surprise.

And so here are three questions I want you to carry with you this week. Three questions that reshape how you walk through the unexpected moments.

What are you seeing, and what are you not seeing?

Most of us only look at the surface. So I’m asking you to face the challenge, the fear and the pressure.

Like Elisha’s servant, we don’t always see the full picture. We don’t see the roots God has already strengthened, or the people He has placed around us. We don’t see the armies of heaven fighting on our behalf.

Ask yourself, “Am I only seeing the problem or am I looking for God’s presence in this situation?”

2. Who has God already sent to support me?

Elisha’s servant wasn’t alone. He had Elisha with him, the angels surrounding him and God above him.

You are not alone either. You may have support God has already placed in your path such as a sibling, a friend, family member, a spouse, coworker, your church family, a mentor, someone who encourages you, prays for you, or shows up at the right moment.

Take a moment and name the people God has placed in your life. Who has God used to surround you?

Sometimes the miracle isn’t God removing the surprise. Sometimes the miracle is god sending the right people to walk with you through it.

And the final question is What would change if I asked God to open my eyes?

This is the heart of our passage today. The real breakthrough didn’t come when God struck the enemy with blindness later in the passage. It came when God gave the servant sight to see his protection and provision.

Because once you see differently, you live differently.

So ask yourself, How would I respond if I truly believed god was already here, already working, already surrounding me?

Your situation may not change overnight but your perspective can change today.

I want to challenge you to reframe whatever surprise is currently surrounding your life.

Instead of saying, “I don’t know how I’m going to get through this,” say, “Lord open my eyes to see how You are already working.”

Instead of thinking, “This came out of nowhere,” say, “God saw this before I did, and He has already begun preparing a way through it.”

Instead of asking, “Why is this happening to me” ask, “What is God revealing to me through this?”

When you change the questions you ask, you change the way you see the situation.

You may feel surrounded by the surprise, but you are actually surrounded by the Savior. And when God opens your eyes, you will see that what was meant to intimidate you wis the very place where God plans to reveal His faithfulness.

Let us pray,

Father, You see every heart in this room. You know the surprise they walked in carrying, the weight, the worry, the unexpected battle they didn’t ask for. And God, You care. You meet us in the places where we feel afraid, confused, or unprepared. So today, open our eyes. Let us see that You are closer than the crisis. Let us feel Your arms around us more than the pressure around us. Let us trust that even when life catches us off guard, You never lose sight of us. Help us recognize the people You’ve sent into our lives, the strength You’ve placed within us, and the protection that surrounds us. Let the same fire that filled the hills of Dothan fill our hearts with courage. Lord, we surrender our fear, and we receive Your peace. We surrender our panic, and we receive Your presence. We surrender our shock, and we receive Your sight. Make Your nearness real to us today. In Jesus’ name, Amen

I always like to close out our sessions with a practical gardening tip:

Check the Underside of Your Leaves Regularly Many garden surprises hide where you don’t normally look under the leaves. Pests like whiteflies, spider mites, and fungal infections begin underneath before they show on the surface.

Life’s surprises often begin “under the surface”in unseen places: like subtle stress, unaddressed wounds, spiritual dryness, and emotional fatigue. Regular spiritual check-ins such as prayer, Scripture, and reflection will help you catch life’s surprises before they overwhelm you.