Thou hast asked a hard thing…2 kings 2:10

Elisha had it all figured out, he wasn’t going to miss the chance; he wasn’t going to be satisfied being a regular prophet. He understood that Elijah’s departure signifies the end of an era and the beginning of a new dispensation, in which the “singular” anointing possessed by Elijah might not be adequate.

It was also an open secret that Elijah had committed a lot of “atrocities ” which comes with potential reprisals for whoever will be coming after or has anything to do with the rugged Prophet. Elisha therefore knew that only an extra-ordinary prophet with at least double of the anointing of Elijah will be able to survive and thrive in a period when prophets are massacred and mercilessly dealt with.

But to achieve all these, the only way out for Elisha was to request the HARD THING!

· It was hard because even Elijah had and worked with a “Singular” portion of his own anointing.

· Hard because Elijah had paid his dues, tarried and gathered years of “experience” for the anointing he carried and used.

· It was even harder because, until Elisha asked, Elijah did not realize he had more anointing and capacity than he utilized and would not have been afraid of Queen Jezebel in any way!

And so, it was HARD but guess what, It was not impossible.

How many times in our lives have we failed to make the hard request?

If Nigeria’s founding fathers had failed to ask for independence, would we have been given? Yes, they asked for a HARD THING.

If King Hezekiah had not asked for an extension of his life span, would he have gotten 15 years more? Yes, he asked a HARD THING. “God cannot change His mind”, they must have told him while growing up.

I can go on citing examples but you know how this affects your life.

· You know how you could not demand for a better salary or wage despite your hardwork and commitment, simply because you don’t want to get fired or make your boss feel bad.

· You know how you could not demand for better service from that person because nobody else has ever done that or that it will make the person feel bad and label you a bad person.

· You remember how you could not demand a better and fairer revenue share simply because you are afraid that partner might walk away!

· Asking that Wonderful Sister out became a herculean task, even when you have done the spiritual and Physical due diligence (…lol), simply because she is too pretty, classy or simply out of your league!

Let me encourage you today, to ask the HARD THING. Only the ones that realize what they need enough, that realize the need of the unborn generation enough and that realize the capacity needed enough to request the hard things, will be the ones to get the double portion. And they not only make a way for themselves, that act paves the way for others as well.