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Day 97, or April the 7th. Good number twos are hard to find.

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Our thoughts today are rooted in 2 Kings chapter 2 verse 3. The company of the prophets at

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Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, Do you know that the LORD is going to take your master

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from you today? Yes, I know, Elisha replied. So be quiet.

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The big picture surrounding this verse. Many of the miracles of Elijah and Elisha are like

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Jesus' miracles, two of the most obvious being the raising of a Gentile woman's son

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by Elijah, very like Jesus in Matthew chapter 15 verse 21, and the multiplication of loaves

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by Elisha, similar to the feeding of the 5,000 in Matthew 14 verse 15. These two prophets

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had a greater influence for good than all the royalty they served. Elijah is finally

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taken up to heaven whilst Elisha remains.

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And now today's action step. Many of us instinctively strive for number one and lots of us are out

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of our depth when we get there. I spent six of my happiest years as an associate minister.

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I was content being number two because I was convinced that was where God wanted me and

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I felt my gifting was suited to the job description of associate rather than senior pastor. I

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was accused of having no ambition, but only by people who didn't know what they were

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talking about. According to Professor Lawrence J. Peter, who propounded the Peter principle,

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in a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence. People who show

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competence are promoted whether or not they are qualified to perform competently at the

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next level. Eventually they go beyond their limits, become incompetent and stop getting

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promoted. If this principle is true in commerce, it is most certainly true in the church. Elisha

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was happy as number two with Elijah as his master. The time came for Elisha to replace

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Elijah, but I am convinced that he would have happily served as number two if Elijah had

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stayed around. Don't strive for the next step up. Instead, strive to be the best you

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can by doing the job God has called you to do today and doing it well.