Of all the races, performances and competitions in the Olympics, none are more captivating than the relay races. There is something unique and exhilarating in the “Passing of the Baton.” That critical moment of Release by the current racer, and instantaneous Grasp by the next. The explosion of the new racer catapults the crowd into ecstatic roars of enthusiasm and excitement. Everyone is participating...and the Team gets the crown.

It was a bit like that with the prophet Elijah and his immediate successor, Elisha. There was the first step of divine Revelation. God revealed to Elijah that his Season was changing. He was no longer to personally minister to the people of Israel, but rather exclusively to a young disciple named Elisha.

It was, perhaps, the most critical phase of Elijah’s ministry. Because the impact would multiply and ripple for generations.

Elijah’s ministry to Elisha lasted several months. Our ministry to raise up Bible Teachers has taken a bit longer: 20 years and counting. It has always been the rule of this Ministry to have a 100% indigenous staff. First and foremost with the Bible Teachers. We raise up Bible Teacher s from within the program. We never have and never will hire “outside” teachers. God calls us to raise up our own disciples.Not hire someone else’s. Not teachers, not administrators, not worship leaders. We have no permission to subcontract the hard work of Discipleship to others. John the Baptist raised up his own. And Jesus then raised up His own. But this Biblical method requires time, patience and perseverance. Things we don’t exactly have an abundance of.

During the past 20 years, there were many “Elishas” along my way. Men of God, raised up through the Ministry, who were gifted by God, and then Discipled, and confirmed in their Calling as Teachers in the Bible Schools. The current cadre of indigenous teachers is not the first. It is about the third or fourth iteration of raising up a Teaching Team from amongst the slum pastors. And that is the point. It’s rarely a wrinkle-free quick work. It is surely God’s Grace if it works the first round, as it did between Elijah and Elisha. That came to pass in a way that was not entirely comfortable for either, but certainly it was fast and efficient. After all, Elijah had a heavenly chariot to catch! One that none of us can miss.

The more common experience is like Jesus. He raised up hundreds of disciples, and a dozen apostles, over 3 years. And yet they all fell away in the crucible of Gethsemane...

And yet God’s Grace was equally abundant in the “Delay and Disappointment” as well. The handoff from Jesus to the apostles was not exactly smooth. In fact they all dropped the Baton. Some never recovered. But others were raised to new heights. None of them argued about positions of “greatness in the Kingdom” again. Their obvious fractures and failures were not because Jesus had done a bad job of Discipling. Likewise the “success” of the transfer to Elisha wasn’t because of the great work of his mentor Elijah. We cannot divorce the hand of God from the outcomes of Biblical Discipleship. Although Elijah was gone, Elijah’s God remained.

God is careful to anoint others to carry on His work. It is HIS work, not ours. We are simply called to do our part according to His Will. Then the outcome becomes His Responsibility, as to Him belongs the Glory.

And so I’ve had to learn to get out of the way. And stay on His Way. His Way includes mountaintop experiences and “vehement tears” in valleys. Some days I’m not sure which one it is. I’m so very blessed to see the Ministry maturing and bearing tremendous fruit. Other days I wish I was simply back in the teaching pulpit where I prefer to be. It’s all very challenging to my servanthood and my preferred routines. It’s not that I’ve been relegated to the background. In fact, I’m running harder than ever before in a very complex role. I’ve just been airdropped into an entirely new Season. Another Race is on...a new Baton is in my hand.

When in Kenya, my focus is almost exclusively on coaching the Teaching Team and Administrative Staff, and keeping the Ministry focused. My Season of discipling individual students has passed. When in the States, my focus is on raising awareness of the Ministry amongst the churches, coordinating the administration of 3 Bible Schools, and Discipling our Teachers’ with their studies, notes and class preparations. My long days of Bible studying for my own classes are over for now. Like Elijah with Elisha, the Apostle Paul with Timothy, Jesus with the Twelve, the Season has changed. Never to go back to what is was before. That’s not something to be mourned. Rather it is to be celebrated.

The Relay Team is on the move!

You don’t have to be in full time Ministry. There are plenty of “Elishas” and “Timothys” in everyone’s midst. First and foremost in our own immediate and extended family.

Every day is one step closer to the approaching Next Season. The seeds that we have planted and watered for many years will surely bear Fruit. Of one kind or another. And then we will be moved, by God’s hand, to help our disciples/children/students become seed planters and water carriers themselves...“Passing the Baton” to the next generation.

We currently have eight Teachers in the Bible Schools. I have discipled these specific men anywhere from 9 to 18 years each. These are my Elishas. Filling my seat on the teaching pulpit, ministering directly to the Pastors of the Least. They are not the only ones. There are many more scattered throughout East Africa doing the work of Ministry. All of them reflect the image and likeness of God, the character of Christ and the imprint of His Servanthood. They have been through indescribable spiritual battles and personal hardships...all for the cause of Christ. Vessels of Honor in the hands of the Most High God. Baptized with the baptism of Christ’s sufferings.

Men of God appointed not by me, but by God. And because they are appointed by God, they have, like Elisha, a “double portion” of Gifting. That much is needed for the task ahead. The times are perilous. The battle is fierce. The enemy of our souls knows his time is short. The Race is almost over. We must carry that Baton and press it into the next runner’s hand.

Persevere with your disciples no matter how it looks at any point. You may be on the mountaintop today...tomorrow all the wheels might fall off. That’s to be expected. Seasons change. People change. Our very Calling can change. Embrace the Change of Seasons. And when God calls you to Pass the Baton to Elisha...then know that the Race is not over. In some respects, it has just begun. You are to pick up the next Baton...begin your next Race...in your new Season.

Keep running! Until your chariot arrives.