This morning I was reminded that God wants our obedience with the right attitude regardless of the way things may appear. In 2 Kings 5, Naaman, commander of an army (a VIP), went to Elisha the prophet expecting a healing miracle. Without leaving his house, Elisha sent a messenger outside to tell Naaman to go wash in the Jordan River seven times and he would be cured of leprosy. “But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy’.”
Naaman went off in a rage about the instructions he received because he had in his own mind the way he thought things should be done. But God does not move according to the way we think. In fact, we’re told to “lean not to our own understanding.”
But the point I want to make is found in 2 Kings 5:13. Commander-in-chief Naaman had people in his life:
servants/followers/subordinates/employees… who were not “yes” men. They dared to challenge the actions and attitude of their commanding officer. While Naaman was fuming over things not going the way he thought they would, these men went to him and said, “[Sir], if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!”
Naaman listened to them, followed the prophet’s instructions and was cured. God blessed this man after he dealt with his prideful attitude. Thank God for people in your life who will respectfully challenge your attitude and behavior and leave you to wrestle with the truth.