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"I'm waiting for God to save me!"
We’ve all heard some version of the story of the man stuck on the rooftop praying for God to save him. The floodwaters are rising and although 3 people offer to save him the man refuses to be rescued explaining that he is waiting for God to rescue him. Sadly, the floodwaters cover the rooftop and the man drowns having refused God’s 3 attempts to save him. This story demonstrates how we often ask God for help, but because we have our own vision of how that help should materialize, we end up ignoring the help he sends us.
In 2 Kings 5 we read of Naaman, a Syrian commander who has leprosy. Naaman’s Israelite servant tells him that Yahweh’s prophet, Elisha, can heal him. So, Naaman makes the trip to Samaria to be healed. When Naaman gets to Elisha’s door with his retinue of servants, horses and chariots, Elisha sends his servant out with a message that in order to be healed Naaman must go and dip seven times in the Jordan. This was not how Naaman envisioned that Yahweh would help him. I can just imagine how Naaman thought it would go down. Elisha would personally come to Naaman bowing and acknowledging his importance and position. Then Elisha would call loudly out to Yahweh, raising both hands above his head while looking up to heaven. Then Elisha would wave his hand majestically over Naaman’s leprosy filled body crying out, “Be healed great commander of the Syrian army!” But it did not happen that way.
Naaman became angry that Elisha did not personally deliver the message to him. And to add insult to injury he was to go dip himself in the Jordan River! Why that was beneath him! So, in a huff Naaman turned around to go back home.
Naaman was at the point of ignoring God’s help because it did not happen the way he thought it should. Luckily for him he had some wise servants who convinced him to do what the prophet commanded. And after dipping seven times in the Jordan, Naaman received the healing help of God.
So, he turned and went away in a rage. But, his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” So, he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
- 2 Kings 5:12-14
Have you been praying for God’s help? Did you know that he has sent you help in the form of Jesus and his holy Word? It could be that you are looking for a grand event to show you God’s help. Or maybe you are expecting an obvious, unmistakable miracle that solves your problem or answers your specific prayer. But as both the story of Naaman and the story of the man on the rooftop illustrate, God does not always work the way we expect him to work. His ways are often difficult for us to understand, but what we can clearly understand, is that he wants to help us and he will help us.
We must not be hampered by our own conceptions of what God’s help should look like. Rather, we must humbly open our hearts and be willing to do as he commands, even if it is something as simple or menial as immersing ourselves in water.
