Relationship

 ¹ The king of Aram had great admiration for Naaman, the commander of his army, because through him the LORD had given Aram great victories. But though Naaman was a mighty warrior, he suffered from leprosy.^[a] 2 At this time Aramean raiders had invaded the land of Israel, and among their captives was a young girl who had been given to Naaman’s wife as a maid. ³ One day the girl said to her mistress, “I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria. He would heal him of his leprosy.”
 ⁴ So Naaman told the king what the young girl from Israel had said. ⁵ “Go and visit the prophet,” the king of Aram told him. “I will send a letter of introduction for you to take to the king of Israel.” So Naaman started out, carrying as gifts 750 pounds of silver, 150 pounds of gold,^[b] and ten sets of clothing. - 2 Kings 5:1-5 (NLT)

Relationship

In a devotion I read this morning, the author used the verses above as the basis for his comments. The theme of his comments was having the faith of a child.  What tickled my "really?" was the idea that a young girl (a servant girl, no less) suggested to her master (a commander in the army) that he go and seek the help of a stranger (a foreign prophet) to cure him of a very personal affliction...and he did!

There's more to this story, don't you think? I thought so...and went to the passage to read more. What I saw was a beautiful example of how our Lord works through relationships for our benefit. (read 2 Kings 5)

We start with Naaman - This man was obviously a man of action and power. He was the commander of the king of Aram's army...and a successful one at that.  You would think that he would be arrogant and used to people listening and obeying him (and it appears that he was, in some respects).  And yet, he took the advice of a young girl (not his daughter, or granddaughter...merely a servant girl from a foreign land). And not only took it, but committed to it with purpose and intent (I'm sure you don't pop over to your king's house and make requests like his without really thinking about it first).

And let's talk about this girl. If you look at her circumstances, by just the facts, she was in an untenable situation.  She had been captured by raiders, taken from her home, family...and anything familiar...and given to  a stranger's wife to be a maid.  She had check marks against her suggestions ever being taken seriously (young, girl, captured slave) and reasons for not wishing anyone in that household well to begin with.  And yet, she not only did make this suggestion, but Naaman took her advice seriously and acted upon it.

That says relationship to me.  What else could it be? Let's use an example for us today. Would you, truthfully, go to the CEO of your company and ask him to pay for you to fly to Brazil to see some spiritual healer that your maid recommended you go to?  Would your CEO say, "Sure! And here's lots of extra money in case this man charges for his services.?"

You see what I'm saying. There had to be a lot of trust and relationship...between Naaman and the girl, between Naaman and his king. And later on, it's obvious that there was a relationship between Naaman and his officers. They cared enough for him to try to persuade him to change his mind.  And He respected them enough to listen to their suggestions.

And what was all of this ultimately leading Naaman toward?  Was it just for his physical healing?  No, that's too temporal and too "of this world."  Our Lord works toward things far beyond that.

In the end, this whole chain of events brought Naaman into relationship with God.  

This is how our Lord works His miracles in our lives.  At least that's how He's worked the miracles that I've experienced in my life.  Each time I've trusted Him, and stepped out into a relationship that He has guided me to, it has changed me for the better...and brought me closer in my relationship with Him.  I didn't have leprosy, but I did need a lot of spiritual healing (still do, as a matter of fact). It's relationship: friendship, commitment, trust, effort...with my Lord and with my family (blood relatives and heart kin) that has me dipping in my own Jordan River to be cleansed and renewed.

Dear Lord - thank you for revealing another truth to me through Your Word.  I know that you worked through Naaman's relationships, and through my own, to bring your healing love to us both. I am so deeply grateful and very aware this morning of how precious and miraculous each one of those relationships is. Thank you for all the people that have touched my life and cared enough to steer me toward your River of Life.  I love you so very much. Amen.

Blessings and peace,

Leah