Thursday 11 July 2013

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL


THURSDAY 11 JULY 2013.

THEME : CHANGE YOUR LEVEL.

MEMORY VERSE : And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: Genesis 26 : 13.

READ : 2 KINGS 2 : 9 - 15.

2Ki 2 : 9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.

2Ki 2 : 10 And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

2Ki 2 : 11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

2Ki 2 : 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

2Ki 2 : 13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;

2Ki 2 : 14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

2Ki 2 : 15 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : JEREMIAH 3 - 5.

It is possible to wine and dine with the King of Glory and not have a life transforming encounter with Him. Several crowds that followed Jesus remained onlookers: just seeing the signs He performed without having a personal testimony. May you not allow complacency to rob you of your full potential in Christ. If you look at the life of those who become champions, there was a time when they were just potential champions – a time when they were yet to fully develop their potential. But later on, they moved on from that point. Take for instance David: by the time he was anointed to be king in the presence of his brethren in 1 Samuel 16 : 11 - 13, he was a potential champion. In fact, Saul was still on the throne. Also, in Judges 13:24-25 when the Spirit was moving Samson from time to time, he was just a potential champion. Similarly, in 1 Samuel 3 : 2 - 18, Samuel was a baby prophet who did not even know how to identify God's voice. So was Elisha in 1 Kings 19 : 19 - 21 when the mantle was first put on him.

In every potential champion, there is a seed of greatness. Yes, whether you believe it or not, there is a seed of greatness inside of you. If you are born-again, God has planted a divine seed in you. It is not every potential champion that will eventually become a champion. If you allow the seed of greatness to lie fallow in you, you will never go beyond being a potential champion. It is okay to begin as a potential champion but a terrible offence to die as one. Every potential champion would need to face several situations, circumstances and experiences before becoming a champion. For instance, after his first anointing, David was anointed again before becoming king over Judea (2 Samuel 2 : 4). In 2 Samuel 5 : 3, he finally became king over all Israel. This was when his potential was fully realised. Similarly, it was in 1 Samuel 3 : 19 - 21 that Samuel became an established prophet over the whole of Israel, while in 2 Kings 2:9-15, Elisha became an established prophet. There is a price to pay to move from being a potential champion to being a champion. If David could pay the price and move, you too by God's grace will pay the price and move to your place of destiny.

PRAYER POINT :

Every champion started as a potential champion. If they could change their level, so can you. Father, move me to my next level.