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ANOINTED BY GOD'S BREATH (31 OF 52)

by Christopher Harbin

Scripture: 2 Kings 2:6-15
This content is part of a series.


Anointed by God's Breath (31 of 52)
Series: Discipleship Part Three
Christopher B. Harbin
2 Kings 2:6-15


Transitions are often difficult for us to navigate. We struggle with major events like category five hurricanes. We struggle with more personal issues like a child leaving home, a job loss, a spouse retiring after a career, a health upset that seems to derail our patterns of living, the birth of a child, the passing of a loved one, or a visit by grandchildren. We face change as a fact of life, and yet many changes are difficult for us to manage. We like the comfort of knowing how life works. We like the stability of being able to plan. Like the stock market, we don't really like surprises. How do we deal with the great transitions we face in life?

The Bible often has an interesting treatment of great times of transition. It is normally silent in regard to human emotions or what we would consider a psychological analysis of what was going on in the lives of its characters. Rather than delving into character studies, the texts march through the events themselves, leap-frogging over the psycho-social drama or trauma of the events portrayed. The narrators pull us toward the new realities Yahweh may have crafted, jump-starting on the transitions in play.

Today's text in Second Kings is a case in point. The text is virtually silent on the hurricane of emotions that were surely at play between Elijah and Elisha. The two were invested in the journey at hand, but they experienced it from very different perspectives. Elijah was preparing for his departure from earth, following Yahweh's lead from one place to the next. Elisha was preparing for Elijah's departure and life in his absence. Neither knew what awaited Elijah or how to anticipate what was coming. Elisha's expectations surely encompassed the grief of Elijah's absence, yet they also concerned the character and shape of his own ministry in the years ahead.

Yahweh took the prophets from one significa ...

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