In 2 Kings 5, we find the story of Naaman and Elisha. Naaman, who was an esteemed military leader, also suffered from leprosy. When he approached Elisha for help, Elisha told him to wash in the river five times, and he would be healed. Not having expected this method of healing, Naaman first became angry before he finally submitted to the will of God. From this story, we learn several key things about trusting God:

1. We are never called to understand God’s ways. We are simply called to be obedient. The truth is that God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours. We’ll never fully understand why He does things the way He does; miracles aren’t logical—that’s why we call them miracles and not logics. Our calling is simply to obey what He tells us to do.
2. Pride is in your way. All of us struggle with pride—the assumption that we know best. Naaman thought he knew exactly how God should heal him; when his expectations weren’t met, he was furious. In order to walk where God would have us walk, we must get over ourselves and submit to Him.
3. God doesn’t want religion; He wants true belief. In the Old Testament all the way to today, people have tried to reach God by their works, their piety, and their ritual. God doesn’t need our religion, however. He simply wants us to believe. As Elisha told Naaman, “Wash, and you will be clean.” Naaman only had to believe God, and he was healed.

Why do we allow pride and our expectations to get in the way of our relationship with God? Because we’ve adopted a false belief that other things are more important—our career, our friends, our accomplishments, and other things take up so much of our time; and we often refuse to make time for Him. The truth is that knowing God is the most important purpose of our lives; everything else is secondary. So…will you trust God, and believe what He says to you?

Live Big!

Dr. Derek Grier