Elisha purifies water and makes stew 

2 Kings 2.19-25 & 4.38-44 

One baldheaded old man, two bears and forty-two kids...This isn't the story of a grouchy old prophet having a bad day. This is all about the view God takes of people (kids included) who dishonor the Holy.

While we don't see bears attacking crowds of kids these days, we need to understand that God still places individuals under an encumbrance of judgment who dishonor that which is honorable.

It is part of the curse of the downward spiral. Those who participate in 'dishonor' go from good to bad, from bad to worse. Their lives become self-fulfilling prophecies of self-destruction.

On the other hand, those who honor become honorable and receive honor. This is part of the judgment cycle of God. We truly do reap what we sow, both to honor and to dishonor.

However, there are more to these passages than just the obvious, surface interpretations of stories about an old prophet who throws salt in a spring, flour into stew, and sets a few barley loaves in front of lots of hungry men. This is the continuing story of God's ability to take bad situations and make them good for those who honor Him.

Are you filling your vessel with honor or dishonor? Are you, by your life, prophesying the goodness of God and His ability to lift you up - or are you prophesying bitterness in the spring, death in the pot, and failure to thrive?