Devotional Five: Elijah and Elisha

And Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So, they went down to Bethel. 

–II Kings 2:2 

TOAD: If there’s a… 

Wolf at your heels 

Giant wolf at your heels 

And you’re running as fast as you can 

I’ll stop the wolf 

I’ll in fact bop the wolf  

On the head with a big frying pan! 

–A Year with Frog and Toad 

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Hopefully, everyone has had the experience of having a wise mentor. During my time in graduate school for directing, I had two great mentors. The first mentor challenged me in many ways by always questioning why I thought a certain way about a topic. She pushed me to widen my preconceived ways of thinking. Why was my thinking regarding theatre this way? Had I considered thinking about theatre in another way? She changed my thinking about what a director does. The second mentor thought about theatre in similar ways that I did. He helped me to refine my directing process and remain true to myself as an artist. Both mentors have remained my good friends, and I often turn to them with directing questions and thoughts even today. I am so thankful to the Lord for providing these wise people I now consider friends. 

In the Old Testament books of I and II Kings, the Bible unfolds the long and illustrious career of the prophet Elijah. He had guided Israel through times of great turmoil and distress, and he himself had witnessed the power and faithfulness of God throughout his time as a prophet. The time had come for Elijah to end his ministry and pass the torch to his protégé, Elisha. Knowing that his end was near, Elijah tried to convince Elisha to leave and strike out on his own; however, just as with Naomi and Ruth, Elisha refused to leave Elijah’s side. Elisha traveled with Elijah over the Jordan River, and Elisha witnessed his mentor be taken up to heaven in a whirlwind. After watching his beloved mentor and friend disappear into the heavens, Elisha picked up Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen to the ground. The picking up of the cloak symbolized Elisha’s taking on the role of prophet that Elijah had left to him. 

A friend can encourage and love us in many ways. Some friends encourage us to know ourselves more deeply, while other friends challenge us to question what we know. An extremely good friend can call us out when we are wrong. May the Lord bless us with the friendships that we want and also with the friendships that we need.