And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you”. And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?”
1 Kings 19:20 NKJV
Elijah did just what God told him to do – “Take off your cloak and put it on Elisha” – 1Kings 19:19. That one act indicated a shift for Elisha. Elisha perceived that this was no ordinary act and responded in accordance.
So as Elijah was about to leave, Elisha ran after him and said “Please let me kiss my father and my mother and then I will follow you”, and Elijah said to him All right, go back. I’m not stopping you!” (Good News Bible).
Elisha knew this was a special moment; he wasn’t sure what it all meant but whatever it was he was not about to let it pass or let anything stop him – it was his kairos moment!
He ran after his potential mentor saying; ‘let me kiss my family goodbye.’ He was not going to let the familiar, (from which we get the word family), stop him.
There are some familiar people, some friends, some associates… you need to kiss goodbye if you are going get into your next season, or else they will hold you back in the ‘family’ tradition.
If you do not you kiss them goodbye they will keep you going up and down, back and forth plowing over the same old territory and not really making any progress – just going around in circles.
You’d stay stuck with them because they are not prepared to shift with you or even allow you to shift– so you have to kiss them goodbye!
