Brothers and sisters, God doesn’t need our help. It may have seemed like an innocent mistake, but in reality, this man’s desire to add his own ingredient to the stew has all the markings of a controlling spirit—and there’s no surer way to intrude on God’s miraculous provision. In today’s devotional, Dr. Michael Youssef warns about an enemy of faith.
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[00:00:00] Salvation from Poisonous Control by Dr. Michael Youssef
[00:00:14] In the Promised Land, the people are dependent upon the rain, which means they are dependent
[00:00:18] upon God.
[00:00:20] In 2 Kings 4, there hadn't been rain for a very long time in the region of Gilgal where
[00:00:25] the school of the prophets and ancient Bible College or seminary was located.
[00:00:30] So people of the region were suffering through a famine.
[00:00:34] One day when Elisha was meeting with the company of prophets, he instructed his servants to
[00:00:38] put on a big pot of stew.
[00:00:41] The stew was to be God's provision, His supernatural relief during this time of trouble.
[00:00:48] God always, always refreshes His righteous ones in times of suffering.
[00:00:54] He may not remove the suffering, but He will refresh His children in the midst of it.
[00:01:00] But then one of the students went out to the fields and found a strange vine.
[00:01:04] Without knowing what it was, he picked the gourds from it, added them to the stew.
[00:01:09] Little did he realize he was adding poison to the pot.
[00:01:13] Brothers and sisters, God doesn't need our help.
[00:01:16] It may have seemed like an innocent mistake, but in reality this man's desire to add
[00:01:20] his own ingredient to the stew has all the markings of a controlling spirit, and there's
[00:01:26] no sure way to intrude on God's miraculous provision.
[00:01:30] A controlling spirit is the number one enemy of faith.
[00:01:35] It ruins relationships, breeds loneliness, and ultimately squeezes God out.
[00:01:40] Anytime we add to God's provision, we poison the pot.
[00:01:45] What God wants is for you and me to trust Him.
[00:01:48] God wants you to meet the conditions of His promises, and then He wants you to stand back
[00:01:53] and let Him do the rest.
[00:01:55] Elisha cured the stew by having his servant add wheat flour to it.
[00:01:59] It wasn't an accident that it was wheat flour for wheat points to Jesus.
[00:02:04] In John 12, Jesus declared, Very truly I say unto you, unless a kernel of wheat falls
[00:02:09] to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.
[00:02:13] But if it dies, it produces many seeds.
[00:02:16] Jesus was the kernel of wheat.
[00:02:18] He bled, died, was buried, rose again and reproduced His life within us.
[00:02:24] He is the flower that removes the poison of sin and self-reliance from our hearts.
[00:02:30] Let's pray together.
[00:02:32] Father, forgive us for the times that we try to force our way into situations.
[00:02:37] Help us to trust You and Your purposes.
[00:02:41] May we relinquish control and seek Your will through Your Word so that we become more and
[00:02:47] more like Jesus.
[00:02:48] We pray this in the name of Jesus.
[00:02:50] Amen.
[00:02:51] To take a deeper dive into today's devotional topic, check the show notes for links to
[00:02:56] additional resources.
[00:02:58] And while you're there, subscribe to the My Devotional podcast so you never miss
[00:03:03] an episode.
[00:03:05] My Devotional is a ministry of leading the way with Dr. Michael Eusse.
[00:03:09] To learn more, visit LTW.org today.