SUNDAY SERVICE: 02/25/2024
Rev: Isabella Muthoni
TITLE: When the going gets tough the tough gets going
Bible reading; 2 Kings 2: 1-12
Elijah Taken Up to Heaven
2 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel.”
But Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.3 The company of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “so be quiet.”
4 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho.
5 The company of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the Lord is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” he replied, “so be quiet.”
6 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.”
And he replied, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them walked on.
7 Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. 8 Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.
9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied.
10 “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”
11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his garment and tore it in two.
INTERPRETATION
“I believe I am talking to the tough that say that they can’t give up! And those are the strong people that rise to work hard and meet the challenge for when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. It means that there are times in our journey when things get tough but as long as you are tough you should get going.”
“I am here to tell you if you are tough, you will keep going and not look back! And I quote “That which is behind and in front of you will depend on what is inside of you” Needless to say if you have nothing inside of you, you might be shaken. The most important things that people have accomplished were by people who continued where there was little hope. It demands a tough person to keep going.
Our greatest glory is not in the time when we had it all, for us to be winners we must understand that when we fell, we got up on our feet and kept on walking the journey. The true measure of a person is not when he is happy! If you want to know if a person’s things will go on, you will assess them based on the hardships for when the going gets tough, the tough gets going.
In another quote” Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
A. Milne” You are a tough person, and you can go on even if you think you are at the end for you are braver and there is power in you.
Elisha who was Elijah’s apprentice found discouragements along the way by people who kept on reminding him that his master was going to be taken away from him. It was not easy for Elisha with all that constant discouragement but still, he kept on following. At times Elisha was told by his master to wait for him at a certain point while he went into the towns, but he never backed down, he kept on following His master, Elijah.
The company of the prophets from Bethel then reinstated clearly unto Elisha that his master Elijah was going to be taken away from him that day. But Elisha responded to them telling them that he knew all that. Still, Elisha would not back down, and he relentlessly continued following Elijah. Again, they came to another point, and he was asked to wait for his master at a certain point while he entered the city of Jericho but then again, he wouldn’t back down!
I want to speak to the people who keep on going despite discouragement. KEEP GOING!!!
After all the discouragement from following his master Elijah, Elijah asked his apprentice Elisha what he wanted from him before he departed. I want to tell you; Follow God till he asks you what you want from him. Keep on going even when you face challenges.
Here are 3 mentalities of strong people.
1. I WILL NOT LEAVE
Tough people never leave till they get what they want. Remember Ruth and what she told Naomi after she was advised to go away and start a new life somewhere else? Ruth never backed down. If she had she wouldn’t be the great great grandmother to Jesus Christ. You have to be like Jacob who said he would not leave till he was blessed. Elisha did not leave Elijah and the Bible says that as they went on, He later came to receive a double portion of his master’s Spirit.
2. TELL THEM “YES I KNOW.”
Some of those things that destroy our marriages are from those who are trying to discourage us but the best answer for such people is “YES I KNOW”. Just like Elisha, do not entertain the company of people who keep on discouraging you.
3. I MUST CONTINUE BECAUSE THERE IS LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL.
Elisha made it in his mind to keep on following and indeed at the end of the following, his master Elijah was taken away and he got a double portion of Elijah’s spirit.
After he had received a double portion, on his way back, he came across his discouragers among them being the 50 men and this time round, they started raising all their worries and concerns to him starting with the unproductiveness of the land that they were on and sure enough Elisha performed a miracle at the well and restored life and productivity to the land even to this present day. Some people discourage you today but if you keep going on and refrain from their discouraging advice, they will seek you to help them solve their problems. TOUGH PEOPLE WILL GIVE HELP TO OTHERS IN THE FUTURE! On his way to Bethel, Elisha was jeered by a group of malevolent and rowdy boys. And he cursed them in the name of the Lord leading to their demise through an attack by 2 wild bears. Needless to say, THERE IS POWER IN ANOINTING FOR ON ONE HAND, HE BLESSED AND ON THE OTHER HE CURSED.
In Conclusion,
WAIT FOR YOUR DELIVERY TIME FOR ALL WILL KNOW ABOUT IT.DO NOT GIVE UP KEEP GOING!!!
I would therefore like to leave you with an inspiring quote,
