Every experience God gives us, every person that He puts into our lives, is the perfect preparation for a future only He can see.
- Corrie Ten Boom

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

The Great Physician

Okay, so my sermon reflection is a little late this week. I've been busy reading, and not writing. The sermon I listened to this week was on the story of Naaman from 2 Kings 5. Also, it was not the greatest week to reflect on late, because I have no notes, either. lol The story of Naaman is basically this: He was a Syrian military leader who got leprosy. He met an Israelite girl who told him to go see Elisha, because he could heal him. Naaman worked this out so that he could go and he brought gifts of gold, silver, and jewelry with him. He knocks on Elisha's door but a slave says, go wash in the nasty, dirty Jordan River 7 times and you'll be cured. Naaman gets mad that Elisha doesn't even bother coming to the door, so he heads for home, angry. One of his servants says, "Hey, if he told you to do something complicated, you'd go and do it, but because he told you to do something simple, you're mad and won't even try?" So, Naaman does, and he's cured. He then decides that maybe the Israelite's God is powerful, and worships Him.

So, how does that relate to our lives today? Should we go wash in the Jordan River? No, I don't think so, or at least not as a matter of course. I think it's more that we a) need to trust God that He can heal us in any way that He so chooses and b) that sometimes what God asks us to do doesn't always seem logical.

On the first point, please remember that there are all sorts of ways that we need healing, it's not just physically. Also, because God can use all sorts of ways, He will use modern medicine and that should not be withheld in the name of faith simply because it is science. There are times that medical personnel have no answers for us, or that God will direct us away from this course, but unless this is the case, it is more than okay to use this. Also, please keep in mind, that God sometimes chooses not to heal us from (especially) physical issues for whatever reason. Just because you don't get the answer you wanted, doesn't mean that He's not answering your prayer or that He doesn't care.

On the second point, we have to trust Him, that no matter what He's asking us to do, He has our best interests at heart. It may seem odd, scary, or downright crazy, but if He's asking us to do it, we've got to have faith that it's going to change the situation. We just need to trust and obey...for while we struggle with this often (or at least I do) that's what this whole Christian walk is all about.

No comments:

Post a Comment