From Loss to Launch: 5 Steps to Greater Capacity
The idea of expansion is always a beautiful one. It signifies that you have outgrown the place where you once labored, practiced, or served. But with expansion comes its complexities. On one hand, it’s exciting—it’s a time of promotion and elevation. On the other hand, it often means leaving behind places, people, and positions that were once dear to you.
As women, we frequently juggle multiple roles—leaders, mothers, entrepreneurs, friends—and it can sometimes feel like we’re giving so much that we have nothing left to grow. But what if the key to expansion isn’t pushing harder, but instead stepping back, recovering what’s been lost, and allowing God to restore and prepare us for something greater?
Often, the tools, gifts, ideas, and resources we need to enlarge our territory and take us into the next phase of expansion can get lost in the process. We experience a loss of passion, identity, vision, or direction. The journey to expansion is a costly one that often requires borrowed faith or belief, but what happens when the very tools we’ve been building with are lost?
There’s a story in 2 Kings 6:1-7 about a floating ax head that offers a powerful illustration of this process. In this story, a group of prophets were building a larger space for themselves when one of them accidentally dropped a borrowed ax head into the Jordan River. Distressed because he couldn’t continue the work without it, the man cried out to Elisha, who performed a miracle that caused the heavy iron ax head to float, allowing the man to retrieve it and continue the work
This story highlights how recovery is often the first step toward growth and expansion. Here are 5 steps to greater capacity that will help you recover what’s missing and prepare you to step into new levels of influence and effectiveness.
The exciting thing about this story is that the very place where the ax head was lost became the site of the miracle. The man’s moment of loss—where the tool was dropped into the river and his work halted—became the exact location where God performed a miraculous recovery. This wasn’t just about getting back what was lost; it was the starting point for renewed progress and continued expansion.
Sometimes in life, the places where we feel the most stuck or broken are the very places where God is ready to perform a miracle. Where you’ve experienced loss is often where God will move to restore and prepare you for your next season of growth.
1. Recognize What’s Missing
Before expansion can happen, it’s important to recognize where you’ve experienced loss. Just as the prophets in 2 Kings 6 had to stop when their ax head was lost, we too must pause and reflect when we sense that something vital—whether it’s clarity, energy, or focus—is missing.
Step 1: Take time to assess where you are right now. What part of your life feels like it’s “stuck”? Recognizing the loss is the first step toward restoration.
2. Take Responsibility for the Restoration Process
In the story, Elisha asked the man to show him exactly where the ax head fell. This symbolizes taking responsibility for recognizing where things went wrong and participating in the restoration process. God often wants to restore us, but He requires our engagement.
Step 2: Be honest about where things have fallen apart. Own your part in the process and invite God into your healing and restoration. Whether it’s setting new boundaries, refocusing on your goals, or seeking support, restoration requires your active involvement.
3. Recover What Was Lost
The miracle in the story happens when Elisha throws a stick into the water, and the lost ax head floats to the surface. In the same way, when you invite God into your process, He will help you recover what seemed irretrievably lost—whether it’s your sense of purpose, strength, or vision.
Step 3: Trust that God is ready to restore what was lost, and be willing to take action. Sometimes that means revisiting dreams or goals you thought were out of reach and recovering them in faith.
4. Renew Your Effectiveness
Restoration isn’t just about getting back what you lost; it’s about becoming more effective than before. Once the ax head was recovered, the work of expansion continued. Likewise, after restoration, you’ll find yourself sharpened, more focused, and ready to step into new levels of effectiveness.
Step 4: After restoration, be intentional about how you approach your goals. Use this season of renewal to refine your focus and work with new clarity. This is a time to streamline your efforts and maximize your impact.
5. Prepare for Greater Expansion
Restoration is not the end—it’s a preparation for greater things to come. God’s restoration often signals that He is ready to enlarge your capacity and expand your influence. Just like the prophets who were enlarging their territory, God is positioning you for a season of greater growth.
Step 5: Be open to what God is preparing you for. Restoration isn’t just about recovery; it’s about being equipped for greater influence and capacity. Ask yourself, “What is God preparing me to expand into?” and be ready to step into it with confidence.
Conclusion: Embrace the Process for Greater Capacity
Restoration is a crucial part of expansion. As you go through the process of recognizing what’s missing, taking responsibility, recovering what’s lost, renewing your effectiveness, and preparing for expansion, you’ll find that God is equipping you for more than you ever thought possible.
Whether in your personal life, leadership, or career, the road to greater capacity isn’t just about working harder—it’s about trusting God to restore, sharpen, and expand your influence for His purpose.
Once the ax head floated to the surface, something interesting happened: Elisha told the man to pick it up. The miracle had already been performed, but it required action on the man’s part to fully complete the restoration. This is a powerful reminder for us today: you have to pick it up.
The action that sets you up for the next stage of expansion is your decision to pick up what God has restored. Whether it’s your passion, vision, or strength—recovery is not passive. You must be willing to take hold of what has been brought back and move forward to complete the work God has called you to do.
