Tag Archives: the book of 1 Kings

May 7
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“So Elisha left him [Elijah] and went back. He took his yoke 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 servant.” (I Kings 19:21, NIV)

Talk about burning bridges — with style!

As disciples of Jesus, when we are committed to Him, nothing/no one else matters; but it doesn’t give us license to be disrespectful or ungracious to others.

When Elisha received from God the call to become Elijah’s successor, Elisha asked for permission from Elijah to properly bid farewell to his mother and father (verse 20).  That was the respectful thing to do.

Elisha then sacrificed the implements of his former life (the plowing equipment and the oxen) and from them hosted a huge “barbecue” for his neighbors. That was the gracious thing to do.

We may not be able to choose our destination, but we are able to choose how we go. Let us strive to be respectful and gracious in all that we do.  – Luther

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May 5
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“Now the famine was severe in Samaria, and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, his palace administrator. (Obadiah was a devout believer in the Lord. While Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.) (I Kings 18:2b – 4, NIV)

Obadiah, like many of us, was at or near the pinnacle of his working life.  Yet, his position as the king’s “chief of staff” was not the primary force of Obadiah’s life: He was also “a devout believer in the Lord.”

Because of that commitment, Obadiah did what was morally right — even though it was contrary to the law of the land, and he would have paid with his life had his support of the prophets of the Lord been discovered.

May we each be like Obadiah: Not married to our privileges, power, prestige, and position, but first and always committed to — and trusting in — the Lord. If we become stewards of the rich benefits of our years of work and sacrifice, it is only for the benefit of others and for the glory of God.  – Luther

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