BURNING BRIDGES

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1 Kings 19:21 So Elisha left him 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 am been a big proponent of not burning bridges, even amidst the biggest of conflicts. However, in reading today’s text, it becomes clear that some bridges qualify as sites for targeted destruction. The reason is because of their ability to readily offer a way back to the things, people and places from which we ought to be disconnected.

Elisha received the cloak of Elijah, a sign he understood to mean ‘follow me’. In response, he killed his pair of oxen and used the yoke to boil the meat. In other words, he burnt a bridge that was his easiest point of access back into a life of ploughing the land.

Beloved, to step into and remain on course for that which God has for us,
there are likewise many bridges in our lives that we have to burn and those actions will not be pleasant. Bridges of relationships and connections, careers and opportunities, ingrained characters, attitudes and habits.

Hard as these may be, until we severe those links and burn those bridges, we will maintain access to those things which will keep us looking backwards.

#sly