Simple Obedience

I still remember some of my teen years when I thought I was smarter than everyone else. Looking back now I can see how foolish I was to think that. I remember once while in college I got my Grandpa (aka Pappy) a card that said: “the older I get Grandpa, the smarter you get”! He loved the card because I think he realized that I had finally come through the fog of a “know it all” teenager.

As I reflect on my journey the Lord, I realize that I have so much to learn from the heart of God. He could teach me volumes of insight each day for the rest of my life and I still would not exhaust His Wisdom or His Knowledge.

I love the story of Naaman, the military leader for Aram “but” he had leprosy. A young servant girl who had been captured from Israel and made a slave to Naaman’s wife, told her of the prophet in Samaria. So Naaman and his entourage head out for Israel with a letter from the King of Aram in hand. He is sent to Elisha. Check this out….

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.

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. (2 Kings 5:9-14 NIV)

This guy had high expectations for what the prophet would do and was so disillusioned at such simple instructions as dip in the Jordan river for 7 times. There is a strong lesson for me to learn in this story. Sometimes the Lord doesn’t need me to do something big and complicated to honor Him. He really wants simple obedience to His call or His command. He calls me to be faithful, honorable, honest, teachable, kind and generous among other things. None of these are complicated or expensive financially – they are quite simple and can be accomplished by “simply” doing them.

I was reminded this morning that my walk with the Lord is not super complicated – it’s a daily walk….hour by hour; minute by minute walk with Him. I want to tune my hearing so that I hear His reminders to simply obey and walk in His way. I want my heart to be clean and restored daily as I walk in simple obedience before the Lord.

Pressing On!

Dwayne