Inspiration

In 2 Kings 2, when the prophet Elijah was about to be taken up to heaven in a whirlwind, he had an assistant named Elisha, who was like his son. Elisha had taken care of Elijah, gone with him everywhere, and made sure he had what he needed. Even though Elisha knew that Elijah was about to be taken up to heaven, and even though Elijah told him to remain behind three times, Elisha replied, "As surely as the Lord lives, I will not leave you."

Three times Elijah said in effect, "Elisha, you've done enough. You've been faithful and loyal. Now go. I'll be fine." Elisha wouldn't hear of it. His attitude was, "I'm committed to you. I was with you in the good times, while you were performing the miracles, and I'm going to be with you to the end." Elisha had plenty of reasons to walk away, but he was committed.

When they crossed the Jordan River, Elijah said to him, "What can I do for you before I am taken from you?" Elisha said, "Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit." Elijah responded, "You've asked a difficult thing, yet if you see me when I'm taken from you, it will be yours." A few minutes later, a whirlwind picked up Elijah and took him to heaven, but not before his mantle fell from him and was picked up by Elisha. Because he stayed committed to serving Elijah, Elisha received a double portion of Elijah's anointing and ended up performing twice as many miracles as Elijah did.

There will be plenty of times when you're tempted to walk away from your dream, from your marriage, from your church, or from your job when things get tough and aren't working out. What you can't see is that there's a double portion up in front of you when you stay committed. That's the way you have to be to see God's best. Your attitude has to be, "I'm committed to my marriage. Leaving is not an option. I'm committed to raising my children. No matter what they do, I'm going to be there for them. I'm committed to being my best at this job, even if my supervisor isn't treating me right. 

When you stay committed even though it's hard, a double portion is coming—double favor, double honor, double resources. When you do the right thing when the wrong thing is happening, God will make things happen that you couldn't make happen. Suddenly things will turn around, suddenly your marriage will improve, suddenly you'll get that promotion.