He was a man of great valor, valuable to those around him. But he had one terrible problem. Despite his esteem among the people, he had an afflicting skin disease. Naaman heard it through the grapevine that there was a prophet in Israel, Elisha, that could cure him, and so he went, seeking help.
9 So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”
11 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. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage. II Kings 5:9-12
Naaman was an important man, and he was insulted that the prophet would send him a message to “dip” himself in the Jordan seven times to be healed. He wanted pomp and circumstance, something big and extravagant. He was an important man in his day and he wanted a showy and instant healing.
13 Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, 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’!” 14 So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy. II Kings 5:13-14
After his servant reasoned with him, he humbled himself enough to follow the prophet’s instructions. He had to submerge seven times, but in the end, the healing came, and he praised the God of Israel for it.You and I, we are just the same as Namaan. We may have a deep need for a healing in our hearts and we pray for a sudden miracle that does not come. We function, but we hurt. And God gives us a prescription. He may ask you to start the work of forgiveness in your heart towards someone. He may ask you to begin handling your finances in a different way. He may ask you to stop listing the person’s wrongs and start giving unrelenting grace. We may have the instructions for our healing right in our very laps, but we don’t want to swallow the medicine. Some of us would rather remain sick, unhealed, and hurt, than to accept the healing tonic of God’s instructions.
Most of the time when we are required to take an antibiotic, or some other concoction for our sicknesses, it takes time for the healing to come. We don’t notice it overnight. But the action of swallowing the pill and internalizing it does the job of healing over time and before we know it, we are well again, the pain removed. The same is true for our Spiritual walk when we are dealing with the hurts of our hearts. When we take the necessary steps by accepting whatever the Lord asks us to do then we too will find that we are made new. It may be a hard pill to swallow, my friend. But “dip” yourself in the Jordan. Allow the cleansing waters of God’s Word and the remedies He gives us to heal your heart today.
(Thanks to Beth Moore for teaching this passage and allowing me to see the truths from II Kings 5.)
“If you don’t figure out a way to clean yourself up, you can find a way home by yourself!” the mother at the baseball field was saying to her young daughter. The little girl made her way across a short field to a fountain and rinsed her barely dirty arms in the stream of water. “My car is nice and clean, you little piggy, and you can just find another way home!” the mother hissed to her child as she worked hard to quickly wash away the bits of sticky stand. The water did the job, cleaning the skin, but I wondered what it would take to wash away the wounds unseen, surely taking up space in the little girl’s heart. The message that said, “If you don’t meet this standard, I will abandon you” keeps ringing in my ears, and I was only a bystander. How much more so it must haunt that child. It was all I could do not to march over to the mother and put my hand over her mouth. My second impulse was to run over to the young girl and assist her in the cleanup and tell her she was loved, messes are part of being a kid, and that she had lovely dark eyes.
As adults, as parents, as believers especially, we have a responsibility to hold ourselves in check with the way we speak to our children. We sometimes think that because “we are in charge” or we are older, or our position is that of parents that we have been given the license to speak harshly and unkindly to our kids. Being stern with them all the time does not make you a good parent. It makes you the parent whose kids will not respect what you say and will eventually turn to things and people that will make them feel loved, heard, and appreciated-and that could be a dangerous alternative.
My oldest son knows the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. So you know what? He is my son, but he is also my brother in Christ. I am to treat him, to treat all my sons as I would any other Christian. Yes, I am still the Mom, and all those nuances of the parent-child relationship remain, but it’s not an excuse to dismiss the truth that they are also fragile young believers who need to see in me the attributes of grace and unconditional love played out as I use self-control over my tongue. The Lord draws us in with loving-kindness. We would do well as parents to check our selves continually to see if that is the tone with which we are treating our precious and impressionable children. They, and their hearts and minds, are sponges absorbing our words, our body language, our tones of voice. May it always, always, always, be a reflection of Jesus Christ!
Jeremiah 31:3
The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.”
Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory. Psalm 115:1
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The animal was straining against the tether, tilting its head to the side, large dark eyes wide with the effort, but it did no good. He was at the end of his rope. The field was vast, the long grass beneath his hooves prime for feeding and yet it wasn’t enough. All he could see was the fodder beyond, the other animals in the distance, and he wanted to just, go. I can relate.
Over the course of my youth, I prayed that God would use me in His service. He blessed me greatly with a position as a teacher where I could share my heart for God, a place where I sincerely felt that I was doing some good. But, it led me to dangerous expectations that because I was being so sacrificial in pouring my life out that I was then due for some good things to come my way. It was an ignorant and misguided belief-a religion that I made up for myself.
The families that surrounded my upbringing lived lives of blessing and security. Fathers worked hard, provided large homes with pools, mothers stayed home to raise kids, a tight-knit church body with many comforts. They were Godly people and the Lord blessed them. I assumed that was my future and I felt entitled to it. God owed me.
You can imagine my dismay when all around me, my friends married young, had children, and carried on while I approached the age of thirty-several heartaches in my wake. Finally, it was my turn and I married my generous husband at age 29. God gave me a glimpse at His unconditional love with the birth of my oldest son that first year of our marriage and followed that up with 2 more beautiful boys who have easily placed themselves into every nook and cranny of my heart.
And then the valley descent really began. We worked hard to budget and squirrel away money for a down payment on a house. I longed for the security of a white picket fence and all the wonderful hospitality and memories that would grace the halls of our home. But that wasn’t God’s plan. The next 4 and a half years would be punctuated with several job losses, trial after trial, and hardship after hardship. That long-saved for down payment would quickly evaporate in an effort to provide basics-diapers, food, electricity. It was a time of faith in dark corridors and yet we experienced miracles of provision. After several years of patchy unemployment and monumental moves from one town to another, I thought we were done with the valley. Our path felt like a marathon and so surely, I assumed, there would be a mountain top view nearby. After all, we had been enduring poverty, friendlessness, loneliness, isolation, humiliation, and persecution, lack of justice, sickness and disillusionment. We couldn’t possibly endure more, right?
Friend, I write to you now as a homeless person.
My dear husband garnered incredible success in his jobs that he had in between our losses and every time the Lord removed him for our refinement and for reasons we may never know about this side of heaven. Guy is a man of rare integrity, creativity, resourcefulness, and talent. His tireless commitment to work hard day in and day out despite the lack of our material needs, to get up and keep going, to never give up trusting in God has been a thing of beauty to behold. I’m proud of him!!!! I don’t blame him for where we are now. God has made it exceedingly clear to us that this was His Sovereign choice and path for us. Period. It’s now been more than a year of a third round of unemployment without a steady salary. Our family members have taken us in to live with them. We hoped it would be for a month or two but the time is creeping by from month to new month. I remember thinking that God would not allow us to be homeless. I had some deeply fearful and anxious moments as I worried so over my children and what would become of us. And to be honest, I descended into a deep pit of anger and grief when I sat in my house and packed my boxes one by one, all alone. I tried to smile when strangers entered my house and bought the curtains literally off my living room walls and while they happily left through my front door with our rugs, dining set, beds, couches, tables, and toys so that we could buy groceries. I wept, “WHY Lord would you allow this to happen to your children…again… when we are trusting in You to provide?!”
By God’s grace, He let me rage for a time and then He took my hands in His and He reminded me that He is God and I am not. He does not owe me a blessed thing. He showed me my pride and reminded me of my prayers that He would use me to grow His kingdom for His glory, no matter what. I needed a deep refining process to get there. At the end of my rope was the freedom of a heart made whole.
I could no longer be distracted by my home or my relationships. It wasn’t the way I wanted to live my married life or the environment that I wanted to raise my children in, but it was the way that God used to show me that no thing, no person, no place, no circumstance in this life can satisfy. It’s Christ alone. The whole time I was holding on to my tether and sliding to the end, I was afraid of what would happen. Now that I am here, it surely is not pleasant, that is true. It’s a place of suffering. But the benefit of having very little in this life, and to have lost most of your belongings is that you gain a deep security in Christ. He’s all we’ve got. And He is more than enough! What’s more, we are terribly excited about our future. We have started a faith-based and family-friendly production business that we know God desires us to pursue. My husband is now fulfilling his calling by doing the kind of work that makes his heart sing and also glorifies God. It’s what he would have chosen to do, if given the choice. God is so good to set it right before us! We have nothing to lose, so we are going for it! To be given the chance to chase hard after God’s purpose for us as an entire family, to be wholly united on that front, and to make an eternal difference is an amazing joy ride! We are blessedly unencumbered! And certainly-when any “success” comes our way, we can be sure it was because of Him and not ourselves! And wouldn’t you know it, now that we just don’t care about “the stuff” anymore, the doors of God’s Storehouse are beginning to crack open.
If you find yourself today in fear of what may happen if you don’t get your way, release it to the keeper of your soul. He does have a good plan for your life! I truly wouldn’t exchange my deep abiding faith for any mansion. God has not been cruel to us. He has been committed to us all along. He gave us His best gift first, in the death of His precious Son. Talk about sacrifice-I will never know the depth of that kind of suffering! I’m praising Jesus for Himself, full of gratitude that in His holiness, He chose a wretch like me. Like Paul, we have learned to be content with much or with little, because the Lord never changes and a steadfast trust in Him is worth it! I don’t ever again want to think that being at the end of my rope is an unsafe place to be, nor do I want to strain against it as if the tether was keeping me from something better. As believers, we have a glorious destiny of greatness to look forward to. But I am so grateful that I have learned to have joy in the season of now. Hosea 11:4 says, “I led them with bands of human kindness, with cords of love. I treated them like those who lift infants to their cheeks; I bent down to them and fed them.” Those cords are, indeed, cords of love. Look beyond your trials today and know that if everything else in your life were to fade away, you would still have reason to rejoice. God is good and He is worthy of our devotion, no matter what.
“Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
Last night, he told me that when he grows up, he wants to marry me. “I’m going to ask God for a ring to give you. It will be a ring of you and me together and it will play this song when you open it: I love you….” he sang sweetly in his 5 year old voice. My heart swelled! For me, it was confirmation that I’m doing something right. As parents, we don’t often get pats on the back that we are raising our kids well. It’s a day in and day out hard work, worthy work, but usually thankless work. The gift of my son’s words will keep me going a long while because the knowledge that he wants to stay with me forever is a sign that he knows he is loved, protected, and secure in my discipline and love for him and his brothers.
How about you? Do most days seem to be plagued with what you see as failures more than progress in parenting? We really are hard on ourselves and fall into the no-good habit of comparing ourselves to other families. Here’s a secret: you’re not perfect, and I’m not perfect. Our kids are not perfect. Only God is perfect. So cut yourself, and them, a big slice of grace. In the long list of qualities we are trying to demonstrate to our kids, they see and feel our love for them most of all. If you are in a parenting quandary over some particular behavior or issue with your children and you aren’t sure where to turn, make today about loving them in all their imperfections, their difficulties, and their wonderfulness! Take a break and show them a hundred different ways that your love for them is boundless, unconditional, and full of grace. Allow the thought of God’s deep love for you to be what motivates you, and demonstrate that to your kids. Tomorrow may be training day again, but sometimes, remembering what it is to simply love and care for these gifts we have been given is all we need to restart our engines and refresh our spirits. Though I may “fail” in some areas as a mother, communicating my love for my kids is one area that I can’t imagine falling short. Will you join me today in extending unconditional love to your children? It will be a blessing to your kids, and to you as well!
I Corinthians 13:3-7, The Message:
“ If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.
Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.
Love doesn’t strut,
Doesn’t have a swelled head,
Doesn’t force itself on others,
Isn’t always “me first,”
Doesn’t fly off the handle,
Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn’t revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.”
YOUR TURN! What is the most wonderful aspect of God’s love in your own life? How can you show your kids that you keep no record of their wrongs? How do your kids FEEL your love for them?
Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory. Psalm 115:1
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“Guess what?” I asked him. “I know. You love me!” he replied with the “yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ve heard this before” tone. It doesn’t bother me that for him, the knowledge that he is loved is routine. My husband and I practice telling all our sons that we love them all throughout the day. Especially when they are being disciplined. For me, one of the most important parts of our conversations over wrong behavior is the part where I tell them, “No matter what, even when you are doing something wrong, I still love you. That never changes!”
I don’t want them to think that there is a standard they have to meet for my love.
I don’t want them to think that when they sin, they are no longer worthy of my love.
I don’t want them to think that there is anything they can do to earn my love.
Do you realize that that is exactly the way God loves you and me? If you are in the middle of suffering, does it make you think that God doesn’t love you? When you look at your failures, do you believe that God couldn’t possibly love you…still? Have you been trying to “be good” so that you can please God and earn His love?
Here’s the amazing truth of the matter. You are God’s pearl. He loves you eternally and unconditionally! Just as I love my children, simply because they are mine, so much more so, the Lord loves us as His children! And though I fail in my love, God never fails! Jeremiah 31:3 says, “The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” And Ephesians 2:4-5 says, “Because of his great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is grace you have been saved.”
If today you woke to deep trials, a sense that God couldn’t possibly love you, or feelings of loneliness and worthlessness, then choose to meditate on the knowledge that God’s love is not like a shifting shadow, here one moment and gone the next. Allow that truth to motivate you to obedience today. He is worthy of your devotion, a perfect Father, waiting to show you the depth of his passion for you, just as you are!
It was the first race of the year, a 5K. I had never run more than absolutely necessary for most of my life and now that I was in college, I decided to take up the cross country team. The only reason they even accepted me is because they were desperate for people to join. In my mind, it was the key to helping me get in shape, but it felt more like a death sentence. Half way through that first race, my shorts too tight, the uncomfortable sensation of my paper number safety-pinned to my chest, and the knowledge that people were looking at me in pity, I wondered why I had ever thought this was a good idea. And when I finally crossed the finish line, I was the very last person. Not from my team. From the entire race. After that day, I made a vow. I would never, ever, ever come in last again and I would better my time with each event. In both, I actually succeeded, and it was an utter miracle.
Eventually, I would learn to love running, but those miserable days of absolute exhaustion and weariness, butterflies in my stomach at the sound of the starting gun, and total soul-deep digging to put one foot down in front of the other gave me some deeply significant and permanent insight into the Christian walk. It’s hard, requires a tenacious spirit, and the determination to run as if to win, but the exhilaration of finishing well is worth every sacrifice. In my cross-country days, I ran just to finish, the thought of winning was never a consideration. My walk with the Lord, however, has much at stake and this race is one that I need to win. My strategy is similar to my cross-country days:
1.) Wake up early to practice. Hello, devotions!
2.) Feed on good food. Memorize the Word!
3.) Enjoy and learn from my teammates. Fellowship with those who are likeminded is essential! Go to church and be involved in Bible studies!
4.) Show up for the races and give it all you’ve got. When life gets tough, don’t give up on the faith. Carry on and trust God to help you run well!
5.) Post race relaxation in a crumpled heap of gratitude that I survived. Take time to enjoy the goodness of God by being thankful for the opportunity to run for Him!
If you feel like you are in a marathon, and getting a bit weary, be encouraged today. Put your every effort into setting your mind on things above, not on earthly things. Remember Who you are running for and ask Him to energize you in your walk with Him. When He turns to you and says, “Well done, my good and faithful servant!” it will all be worth it and then some! Keep running the race, dear one!
I used to think that I had to understand why the events in my life, whether good or bad, were happening to me. When hard times came my way, I thought that if I could just wrap my head around it, that it would somehow ease the pain. Over time, though, it has been a rich blessing for me to learn that my faith is strong when I can simply lean into the truth that God is overseeing every detail of my life, and that He has a much better plan for me than I could ever imagine. It’s a plan that makes less of me, more of Him, and the result is a peaceful and contented life. I don’t have to worry, be anxious, or run myself mad trying to figure it all out-instead, I am meant to trust that God is God and that is enough.
This was never more critical to understand for me than exactly one year ago. My husband Guy and I had moved our entire family 3 hours north to the small town of San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast of California for a new marketing job. We were thrilled to be living in such a beautiful location! As the first year began to come full circle, I wasn’t feeling the sense of security and roots I thought I would feel. I sensed that God was still on the move with our family, but I didn’t know why.
One afternoon, Guy and I headed downtown for a mini-date at a local coffee shop and sat outside with our drinks talking about what God might be up to for our family. The job we had moved to San Luis Obispo for was a blessing but again, we didn’t feel like it was our permanent goal. I asked my husband, whose background was in television, what his heart truly yearned to do, but I knew the answer. We began praying for new direction. 3 months later, my husband lost his job in marketing.
I was home with our older boys and our new 2 month old baby when Guy came home unusually early to tell me the news. I was in shock, but as the reality set in, I realized that this was God pushing us towards something greater, something better, the very thing we had just discussed and were praying about. This was the opportunity for Guy to pursue his vision for serving God and doing something that matters for good. We had nothing to lose. Over the next year, we stepped out in great faith, giving up our comforts, and making bold decisions to pursue a dream that we believe God placed in our hearts. And the Lord, in His beautiful way, orchestrated a plan that was so far better than we could have put in place ourselves! Back in Los Angeles, we have begun our family-friendly, and faith-based television production company-Storehouse Media Group, with the goal of being a light in Hollywood, and providing content that encourages those who watch and honors God. The faith community is underserved and we need quality content that will make a positive difference in our world! It’s a tough industry and we need your support and prayers! Will you help us?
Here is the link to a project we are thrilled to produce Life By Design,
. It’s a show about the Leonard family of Lisa Leonard Designs. Please watch it, and SHARE IT! The support we can garner from you in our community is what we need to promote this work! We are so thankful for the opportunity to be a vessel that God may use to bless others. Thank you for joining us in creating entertainment we want to watch!
