Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking Him to meet with you and speak to you.
Bible Reading
So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yolk of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “then I will come with you.” “Go back, “ Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?” So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yolk of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his attendant.
– 1 Kings 19:19-21
Devotion
Elisha, the God-appointed successor to Elijah was not a “prophet of fire” like Elijah, rather, a “prophet of compassion.” In these two prophets we see a future glimpse into the New Testament characters of John the Baptist and Jesus. John came as Elijah to call the nation back to God with a focus on a call to righteousness and repentance. Jesus came as Elisha showing God’s tender mercy to individuals in the context of truth. Elisha spent most of his ministry in community. Perhaps that is why he had steady strength in desperate situations. When Elijah left the cave om Mt. Horeb, he found Elisha and called him to be his disciple. The fact that Elisha sacrificed his oxen and burned his plows indicates he literally “burned his bridges” and would not turn back from his new calling.
The Big Question
A disciple is a learner and follower. When Jesus challenged people to follow Him, what He meant was: Believe in me, remain in me, learn my ways and obey them. He doesn’t call everyone to quit their occupation to be in full-time ministry. However, He does call each believer to learn about who He is and choose to walk with Him on life’s journey. What have you done with Jesus’ challenge to follow Him as His disciple? How are you bearing fruit both personally and through your influence? Are there things that God is calling you to “leave” so that you can more fully follow Jesus?
Spend some time in prayer meditating on what God revealed to you today.