It's not dead!

Today, the Lord said to me, “It’s not dead.” He told me to declare that over your life, over your vision, over your marriage, over your business, and over your faith. He told me to remind you that He gave it to you and He has purpose for it. He told me to speak life over you, your mind, and your spirit. He told me to stand flat-footed and tell you that, “It’s not dead.”

He showed me that some of you are struggling with some things that, in your mind, you did not ask for. When it came to you, you accepted it, you invested in it, you loved it but now that it looks like there is no life in it, you are questioning God about why He gave it to you. “I was perfectly fine being single, God.” “I was doing alright in the background.” “I was alright with the bible study, Lord.” “I was moving along with the little bit, God.” You sound similar to the Shunammite woman when she went to Elisha after her son died in her arms. “Was it I who asked for a son? I told you not to mislead me!” (2 Kings 4:28 VOICE) She wanted to know how to respond to the death of a promise that she did not ask for but had come to love. Have you been there?

Elisha responded to the woman by sending Gehazi to check the status of the boy by laying his staff on the boy’s face. Nothing happened. There was no response.  Some of you have people that have looked at your situation and declared it dead. They have diagnosed your marriage and said there is no coming back. They have looked at your finances and figured there is no way you can climb out of that hole. They have seen your vision and determined that you cannot possibly get it done. Let me give you some good news! The Lord has seen the lack of response and He is responding with power.  He is sending exactly what you need to inject life into what looks dead. He wants you to know that He has the power to invoke a response where others have had no success. It is not dead!

Look closely at what Elisha did. He decided that an in-person appearance was necessary. He showed up on the scene and he went to work.

“Elisha arrived at the house and saw the lifeless body of the boy lying on Elisha’s bed.  He went into the room, closed the door behind both of them, and prayed to the Eternal. Elisha approached the boy and lay down, placing his mouth on the boy’s mouth, his eyes on the boy’s eyes, and his hands on the boy’s hands. He covered the boy with his own body, and warmth returned to the boy’s body.  Elisha turned around and paced back and forth in the house, then he went back into the room and covered the boy’s body with his own body. The boy sneezed seven times, and then he opened his eyes.” (2Kings 4:32-35 VOICE)

Can I show you how the Lord walked me through Elisha's process?  Go with me! First, Elisha saw that there was no life left in the boy but he did not declare death over him. Instead, he closed off all distractions and he prayed. Stop speaking death over what God gave you! It can still live. He then laid down with the boy.  He didn’t take the “pray from a distance” approach. No, he got close and then he addressed his heart. Heart? Where do you see that, Ebony? It says he put his mouth on his mouth. Well, the Lord reminded me that out of the mouth, the heart speaks. The necessities of life flow through the mouth – eating, drinking, and breathing. Jesus said that life does not come from food alone but from “every word that comes from the mouth of God”. (Matt. 4:4)  If Elisha put life back into his mouth, he could go on. Come on! What is coming out of your mouth concerning your promise?

He then addressed his vision. I was reminded that Jesus said, “the eye is the lamp of the body. If your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.” (Matt. 6:22)  If Elisha put life back into his eyes, he could go on.  He then addressed his hands. Folks, this was the impartation of power! Job said that “he who has clean hands, grows stronger and stronger.” The Lord even said in Isaiah that He has us written on His hands. If Elisha put life back into his hands, he could go on. Have you invited the Lord to put His hands on that gift? He then addressed His body as a whole. Why? Because your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 6:19)  Your body is your sacrifice and your tool for worship. (Rom. 12:1) If Elisha put life back into his body, he could go on.

Finally, Elisha paced the house before he went back to finish the work. In other words, he stepped back from the situation and took authority over the place where the lifeless thing was going to have to live.  Once he had done that, Elisha covered the boy's entire body. Why? I believe that in doing so, he sealed the work by covering it with all that God had put into him. The boy responded by sneezing 7 times. "Sneezing is your body's way of removing irritants from your nose or throat." (healthline.com) The boy was able to reject what death had tried to accomplish and claim the finished work.

Listen! I know this was super long but I need you to know this. When God has given you a promise, He will not let it die before it accomplishes its purpose. It is not up to you to make something happen, but it is up to you to make sure that you get that promise in the right position to live. The Shunammite woman didn't ask for her promise but once she got it, she watched over it and made sure it had what it needed to live. Don't give up...it's not dead.