Let’s Dig a Ditch

One of the many hats I wear is working as a fitness instructor at a local gym. I’ve taught everything from boot camp to kickboxing, and I love it. It’s a great release, puts me around people I wouldn’t normally meet, and most importantly, it keeps me accountable.

Because let’s just be honest… you can’t exactly yell, “One more burpee!” and then go sit down with a Big Mac…

…Well, not in public, at least.

But here’s the funny thing: I didn’t start down the road of becoming a fitness professional because I was a workout junkie or had years of training under my belt. It was actually the opposite.

I still remember walking into my very first class at the gym I now work at. I took a bold front-row spot, thinking, I’ve got this. Boy was I wrong!!

Five minutes into the warmup I was beet-red, drenched in sweat, and questioning every life choice that had led me there. Before long I was sitting on the bench, head between my knees, wishing I had blended into the back row. At one point I even wondered if everyone else had Styrofoam weights while I’d been handed the real ones. I half-expected someone to jump out with a camera yelling, “You’ve been Punked!”

The next day I was certain I had the flu. Muscles I didn’t even know I had were screaming at me. That night at a birthday party, Steve literally had to carry me down the stairs because my legs refused to bend. Mortifying.

Now….If you know Team Browning at all, you know that our family is a family of competitors.  This workout had beaten me, but I would NOT be beat. 

Cue Kelly Clarkson singing, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger….”

Needless to say, I showed up to the next class, then the next class, then the next, and eventually I was talking to the gym about joining their staff.

Funny how things like that work.

Here’s the point: hard work doesn’t always feel good in the moment. In fact, sometimes it feels pointless. Sometimes it feels like you’re crawling through quicksand and not moving an inch.

But the work today…sweating, showing up, digging in…prepares you for the blessings tomorrow.

And that’s exactly what we see in 2 Kings 3.

Three kings are marching through the desert, ready to fight the king of Moab when suddenly their armies and animals are completely out of water. Panic sets in, and that’s when they call for the prophet Elisha.

And Elisha gives them a strange instruction….

“This is what the Lord says: Make this valley full of ditches. For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink.” (2 Kings 3:16–17)

Can you imagine their faces? They were exhausted, desperate, and thirsty, and THAT’S the moment Elisha says, “Grab a shovel and start digging.” 

There are no clouds, no storm… just blistering sun and dry ground everywhere they look. But apparently it’s time to dig.

And that’s when the incredible thing happens.  The kings OBEY and get to work.  Sure enough, by the next morning, God brings the rain and the valleys are full of water. The miracle came, but only after the ditches were dug.

Friend, sometimes God asks us to dig ditches in faith BEFORE we see the rain. That might mean leaning into late-night conversations with our kids when we’d rather be asleep. It might mean saying no to the purchase everyone else is making because we’re committed to stewardship. It might mean choosing forgiveness when bitterness feels easier, or setting an early alarm to pray and spend time with Jesus when sleep feels more pressing.

Digging ditches doesn’t feel exciting… in fact it can feel downright exhausting. Sometimes even pointless. But choosing to walk forward in faith means saying: I’ll dig now because I believe God will send the rain.

The armies could have sat down in the sand, crossed their arms, and waited for God to send water….But if they hadn’t dug the ditches, they would have had no place to hold what God was about to give.

The same is true for us. God often asks us to prepare space in our lives before He pours out blessing.

And sometimes that means making hard choices, trusting that what looks empty today will overflow tomorrow.

So, friend, what ditch is God asking you to dig? Where is He calling you to put in the hard faithful work so that you’re ready for His provision later?

Let’s be women who have the courage to dig ditches even when the ground feels dry. Let’s be women who remind one another that hard work in obedience is never wasted. Let’s lean into the hard things, knowing that He is faithful to provide in His time.

I’m grabbing my shovel today. Maybe it’s time for you to grab yours, too.