RECOGNIZING YOUR DAY OF VISITATION (PART 1)

APRIL 19TH

TEXT:  2 Kings 2:1-3, 9-12 King James Version (KJV)
1.   And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
2.    And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
3.    And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.

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.
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.
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.
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.

Not many of us know how to recognize our moment of change or visitation. When Jesus came out of Jerusalem, He looked at it and wept, because He saw that the people knew not the day of their visitation. He was standing there as the messiah they were waiting for but they could not recognise him because they were blinded by religious traditions and activities. Don't miss your moment of visitation.

The greatest hindrance to anyone recognising a moment of divine visitation is distractions. Too many of us allow ourselves to be distracted from the purpose of God. If you must become what the Lord want you to be, then you must keep your eyes on Jesus. Keep your eyes on Him and you will be amazed the glory that will follow.

When Elisha became conscious of the fact that his spiritual father, Elijah will be taken away into heaven by a divine visitation that particular day,he refused to be distracted by anybody. The sons of the prophets at different points tried to distract him from his focus but he simply told them, “Hold your peace”. In other words, please don’t distract me. Once Elisha was able to overcome those distractions, as he was alone with Elijah, Elijah finally asked him, What do you want me to do for you before I am taken away? That was when Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah's spirit to be upon him.
Only those who stay focused to the end are able to walk in the full glory of their pursuit. If you will stay focused on Jesus like the way Elisha stayed his focus on Elijah, you will see the salvation and the glory of the Lord. It is not difficult to live a victorious christian life, just stay focused on Jesus.