Hard Things

2 Kings 5:1-14

Life is hard. It’s a phrase we hear often, or at least various versions of those words. “My life is hard.” “Adulting is hard.” “Being a kid is hard.” “being a parent is hard.” “breathing is hard today.” When I get overwhelmed by the whole life being hard thing, I remember a sign that my 4^th grade teacher had in her room. It read “We can do hard things.”

We can do hard things. Each and every day we stumble, struggle and pull our way through hard things. I think some of that fight is what keeps me motivated. It’s hard, but once it’s done I’ll feel a sense of accomplishment, I’ll know I’ve “made something of myself.”

In today’s scripture lesson there are some people who do some hard stuff. But they are not the ones we tend to focus on. This story is remembered as the time Naaman took a bath, at least by those of us who learned it as small children. The message to me was always “Be clean, be pure, be obedient.” Funny how as an adult those are not the truths I find in this passage at all.

In fact, the more time I’ve spent looking at the scripture the more I realize that it’s not really so much about Naaman, as it is about those around him.

Scripture tells us Naaman is a “big man on campus” sort of fellow. He is a warrior for the king of Aram, enemies of the Israelites, by the way. He is the right hand man of the king and things are going well for him, except for one small problem. He has leprosy.

Leprosy is the name given in biblical times to all sorts of skin diseases, from eczema to flaky skin to rashes to the disease as it is known today. According to the Israelite tradition, Naaman would have been exiled from the community until he was healed. But remember, he’s not an Israelite! These same rules don’t apply. He’s continued about his work, but he is getting fed up with this issue.

The more he complains and suffers, the more his household becomes unnerved, to the point where a young slave girl, one from Israel, gets the nerve to speak up and offer a new plan of action.

What a brave, hard thing she did! She spoke up for the prophet of her God. She gave voice to the healing powers her homeland proclaimed. She spoke the Lord’s words in a foreign land.

How often do we let words of comfort, encouragement, even healing or salvation die on our tongues because we are afraid of the reaction? How often do we know that healing is available, but don’t offer it out of fear or rejection, fear of humiliation, fear of retribution? It’s hard!  But this girl knew she could do hard things.

After meeting with the king Naaman goes, not to the prophet, but to the King of Israel! That’s how we know Naaman was a big deal, and knew he was a big deal. It’s like approaching the president for an appointment with the presidential dermatologist! It’s over kill. To us it seems hard, but to Naaman it was how things were done. The king had authority in his country, surely this king had the same control over his healers.

After the kings own existential crisis, he sends Naaman on to Elisha for healing. And Elisha refuses to play into this power play. He sends out a servant and says, wash in the river Jordan 7 times, and you will be healed.

No pomp, no circumstance, just a simple bath in a muddy river. It’s a simple thing to do. But Naaman is insulted. Naaman is a big man, and he expects his healing to be a big deal. This simple washing bit is too simple, too beneath him. It’s not the show he’s brought all these goods to pay for!

While life is hard, and can be hard, its often the simple things that trip us up. The simple things like saying thank you when someone holds open a door, or the simple act of passing that kindness onto another. A simple smile or greeting can change a person’s morning, but we too often think of it as wasted energy. The simple acts of a cup of cold water on a hot day, or a meal to eat, even if it’s just a burrito, these are life changing, life giving healing acts. They are simple, and perhaps that’s why we have a hard time doing them.

Naaman does not want to do the simple because it seems like not enough. But God does not turn his back on Naaman, and god does not turn God’s back on us.

God does not leave us bereft of support when tragedy does strike; rather, God employs ordinary people to act in extraordinary ways.

In this cases Naaman’s servants stretch out an olive branch to him. They say “If it had been hard to do you would have done it. What keeps you from trying something so simple?” Naaman realizes he really has nothing to lose, and goes and bathes as instructed. And he is healed.

When Naaman was able to trust, to accept the simple instruction “wash and be clean” he was healed.

He was healed.

He returns giving thanks and praise. He returns asking more about this God who has changed him. He returns to offer thanks and praise. He returns completely healed, a new man, with skin like a young boy.

The slave girl, Elisha, the river Jordan are all set apart, not because they are intrinsically unique, but because God is at work through them, in all their particularity, for the good of Naaman.  For the good of an enemy of Israel.

That’s an oddity. God’s grace extending beyond the chosen people? But it did, and it does. Grace is offered to all. It’s a simple thing really, but we try to make it so hard. God loves the world, not just certain segments of that world. Not just North America, not just the Middle-east, but the world!

So we too are called to love the world. To reach out with these simple gestures of hope, kindness, faith and generosity. Reaching out a helping hand to a member of a different race, culture or religion does not require that one check one’s traditions or faith at the door in the interest of meeting that person on so called “neutral ground.” The slave girl and Elisha are able to help Naaman by drawing on the resources their religion and culture provide, not by setting them aside or kicking them away.

We are called to acts of justice and mercy in response to the grace we have received from God through Christ. Nothing more, nothing less.

Is it hard? It can sure seem that way. And we can do hard things. But sometimes its as simple as a cup and some bread. Sometimes its as simple as a shared meal. Sometimes its as simple as open arms. And we can do simple things too!

Naaman Sermon from 2013

2 Kings 5: 1-14

Did you have a favorite board game growing up? Guess Who is a favorite game at our house. Some of you may be familiar with this game. Each player has a board that looks like it is filled with doors and behind each door is a picture. Each player chooses who they will be and the other player gets to ask 5 yes or no questions to figure out who their opponent is. The questions are often, do you have blue eyes or do you have brown hair. The winner is the one who first correctly identifies the other person. This game was a favorite of mine as a child too! It teaches children to ask questions, to see that people may be similar, but not interchangeable. All in all it’s a good game.

But the more often we play this game the more I find that I want to change things about it. For example, there are not enough women. There are not enough people of different ethnicities. And while you see an image of the people you don’t know who they really are. It doesn’t really show us their identity. You can’t tell just by looking if Joe is a single parent of three, one of which has special needs. You can’t tell if Debbie is a cancer survivor on her way to her next check up.

We have to learn to look beneath the surface to see who people really are and to learn what they really need.

Identity is something that is at the very core of who we are as human beings. We are more than just our occupations, our hair or skin color. We are more than the sum of our various parts. But identity is something so many in our world struggle with, seeking to find their place in a chaotic society.

In the lesson from 2 Kings this morning we have to look closer than outward appearances. At first glance we have a high ranking solider, 2 kings, a prophet and some slaves. With this list of characters one expects the action to really happen with those in power, the kings and the officials, and if we are listening only to them we miss where God is at work in the scripture. It’s through the cast of supporting characters that the work of God becomes known.

Naaman is a high ranking officer in the Aramean army. He is described as a great man, a mighty warrior, but he has fallen victim to leprosy. Leprosy was a huge issue in biblical times. It characterized a host of skin diseases from what we call leprosy now to eczema or rashes. This disease often led to being cast out from among the people. So here we have a high official with the disorder. No doubt there was panic in the household. This kind of thing could ruin the reputation of anyone and Naaman was enjoying being on top. We are not told how many cures he tried, how often he was kept awake by fear, but the issue was serious enough that the slave girl heard about it.

This brave young girl stepped up and offered healing words to someone out of her “sphere of influence.” Naaman, under normal circumstances would not have noticed the girl. She was after all a slave girl, taken from Israel in the Aramean victory. There was no reason for her to share with her captor this good news. But she did. She knew that there was a prophet in Israel who spoke the word of the Lord – Elisha – and she knew that God was in the business of wholeness and restoration. So the slave girl told her mistress about Elisha. Something in her led her to speak of the prophet of God and the healing possibilities.

How often have we been nudged to give words of healing to another, but stopped short? What is it that stops us? Is it doubt? Is it fear? Is it a lack of understanding our own identities? I’m sure that each of these plays a small part in it. By speaking up this girl took a small step that began the journey that would alter and indeed save Naaman’s life.

Naaman went to his king and requested to go visit this prophet for healing. In that time, people believed that if one army defeated another, that army’s god had also defeated the other.  So it was incredible that Naaman would seek the help of a God who apparently couldn’t defend his people.  Of course Naaman didn’t yet know that God works in unexpected ways and shows up in unexpected places. Naaman must have been very important to the king for he agreed and sent a letter to the king of Israel explaining what he wanted to happen. Naaman brought an enormous amount of wealth with him to the king of Israel. It is not clear from the story if it was given by the king or from Naaman himself, but the intent is clear, these items will pay for his cleansing. Naaman was a man of the world and knew the way the world worked. He wanted to make sure there was no reason to deny his request. Naaman did everything in his power to secure healing.

In his power. Power had become a key point in Naaman’s identity. He was a powerful mighty man and he approached another king with the words of his king and treasure to assure he would be listened to. If we had any doubts about Naaman’s reputation the reaction of the king of Israel should clue us in.

When the King heard of Naaman’s request he tore his own clothing. He was convinced this was a military ploy to take him out of what power he has left. He was worried this was a way to begin fighting between their two nations once more. This king’s identity is also found in power, but he had learned that his power could be taken away.

When we place our identity in things like rank, power, prestige we will spend most of our time and energy to preserve those things. To be on top, the top of the class, the top of the pyramid, top dog, top gun these things are goals, glorified by our society. Yet once you attain these heights you must spend time looking over your shoulder waiting for someone to attempt to knock you back down.

Elisha, the great prophet who had picked up the mantel of Elijah, stepped forward and told the king to let Naaman come and see that there is a prophet in Israel. And so the King agreed.

But while Naaman was on his way a messenger was sent out to him. Naaman was not happy with this news. He expected at least a little special treatment from the prophet. Naaman’s pride was wounded by the low-key, if not outright rude, reception he received from Elisha. Naaman clearly had an idea of how things would play out and was angry that the prophet didn’t make a big production out of calling on God. He was a big man, important, wealthy; a big deal should be made to save him.

What’s worse, all that the servant told him to do was go dip in the Jordan River – that muddy insignificant creek – 7 times. What junk.  What insult.  Just wait till the King of Aram hears how his favorite general was treated!  Naaman turned to go.
 Naaman couldn’t see the God might just work in a different way.

Naaman was so upset by the simplicity of the prophet’s directions he almost missed out on the opportunity for healing. It again took the words of servants to tell him to try even though it is unexpected.

His servants called out to him –if the prophet had asked you to do something great, wouldn’t you have done it?  This is such a simple thing – why not do it?”

And that was the exactly the issue.  There was not spectacle, no magic, no pomp.  It was too simple.  It was too easy. It was too good to be true.

Naaman had built an identity for himself of power and prestige and he expected others to respond to it. Elisha does not play into Naaman’s ego. Neither does God.

It was so unlikely – a slave girl has an important message for her master, giving him the information to get the thing he most desired.

It was so lowly – not a king, not even a prophet, but a servant gives him the message that can heal him.

It was so improbable – a dirty creek, not a mighty river, is the means to his healing.

Naaman saw the wisdom in his servant’s words.  There really was nothing to lose.  And if this worked…
He dunked down in the muddy waters – once, twice, three times…seven times.  And when he came up on the seventh time – he was healed.
            And more than just physically – because Naaman knew in that moment that God was God.
 God had opened the mouths of the servants and the heart of Naaman to the real possibility of healing, and once Naaman was healed he then professed faith in the only God, the God of Israel.

It’s a powerful story, taking twists and turns that would not have been expected. And it leads Naaman to a new identity, that of a child of God. You see my friends, that is the identity that we need to claim in ourselves, that is the identity that we need to recognize in others, that is the identity we need to help others see in themselves. We are children of God, joint heirs to the servant’s kingdom.

Here in an act strikingly similar to the sacrament of baptism Naaman begins to see his need for God and responds with a profession of faith. This moment was not the end of Naaman’s journey, but rather the beginning of his new identity, his new life in God.

Are we, like Naaman, looking for God in all the wrong places?
 Are we looking for fireworks and miracles, and miss the little daily ways grace comes to us?
 Are we expecting mighty prophets (or preachers) when God sends servant girls, and apprentice disciples, and healed demoniacs, - and us - to spread the good news?
 We find God in the unlikely, unexpected places when we open ourselves up and look beyond our expectations.
 In the words of a slave girl and a message from a prophet, and a dip in muddy water,
In the song of a expectant mother and a baby wrapped in swaddling and the shepherd’s story,
In the cry from a cross and an empty tomb,
In water poured over a baby’s head,
In a bit of bread and sip of wine,
In a listening ear, and a burden shared,
In laughter, and a child’s joy,
 In the words of a holy hymn or even song on the radio that touches your heart,
In the smallest moments, the simplest things,
God speaks healing in our souls.

When we look beyond the goals and dreams of our society, when we set aside the roles assigned to us, when we seek to see ourselves as children of God, nothing more, nothing less, we begin to change. It is the beginning of our journey to healing and wholeness. We will be made new.

With this new identity may we boldly proclaim the good news, just as the slave girl and the servants proclaimed it. May we claim our identity today and help lead others on their journey. Amen. And Amen.

2 Kings 4:42-44

2 Kings 4:42-44

42 A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing food from the first fruits to the man of God: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. Elisha said, “Give it to the people and let them eat.” 43 But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred people?” So he repeated, “Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’” 44 He set it before them, they ate, and had some left, according to the word of theLord.

I did a children’s message once about tithing. Tithing, the biblical principle of giving back to God the first-fruits or first 10 %, is difficult to explain to adults let alone a rowdy group of elementary school students. I prepared 9 bags of 10 pennies and one empty bag, fairly certain that we would have ten children that morning. And we did, 10 kids, just as planned. I handed out the bags one at a time and I told the kids these coins were theirs to do whatever they wanted with, then asked them to share how many coins were in their bag. They each had ten, except for Houston whose bag was empty.

It didn’t take any time at all for the kids to start offering to share with Houston, and one very smart child realized that if they all gave Houston one then they would all have 9 pennies, the same amount. Houston stood next to me and each child gave him one coin. And when he counted them he had 13.

Everyone still had 9 nine coins in their bag, but Houston had 13! I will never know exactly where those extra coins came from, but Houston smiled and handed me the extra 4 pennies and said “Mrs. Cardelia, you can have my left overs.” God can take a little and do a lot.

Read Sermon Scripture 2 Kings 4:42-44

I confess to you this morning that while I’m sure I have read this passage before, it has never stuck in my mind. Perhaps it’s because this text is paired with the feeding of the 5,000 and by contrast feeding 100 doesn’t sound like such a big deal!

But in God’s world, the numbers don’t matter, it’s the people that are important.

Elisha is going around the community speaking the words of God and establishing himself as the successor to Elijah’s prophetic authority. This particular miracle is the 4^th explained in chapter 4, all of which echo a miracle performed by his predecessor.

This is God’s way of reminding the people that while Elijah has been carried to glory, God is not done with them just yet!

The people find themselves in a time of famine, a time of scarcity. There is not enough to eat and there are those without food. It is harvest time, perhaps the time when being without food is the most keenly felt and a man, from a town named after a foreign god, brings his first fruits, his tithe to the prophet.

His first fruits, that means the very first things harvested, without knowing for sure that what will be left will be enough, but trusting that God will provide.

He sets his gift before the prophet and Elisha tells his servant to feed the people.

Twenty fist sized loaves of bread and a few handfuls of grain might feed 20 people, not 100 and the servant is quick to point this out to Elisha.

How quick we are to worry that there is not enough. How quick we are to fear running out.

In our society there are often times when panic arises over the fear of not having enough. I shudder to think haw we might handle such a thing as rationing in our day! There are those that horde all they can get to make sure they have what they want. There are riots at store when certain items go on sale or when the latest and greatest thing is released. Anyone remember the Cabbage Patch riots of the 80’s? Heck, we even buy our movie tickets online in advance not just because we are worried that the show might sell out, but because the theater might run out of the right seats and we would get stuck on the front row!

The servant sees how little there is and panics. Elisha repeats his words to the servant and adds this “thus says the Lord. They shall eat and have some left.” God can take a little and do a lot. Mighty big talk for a new prophet! But the food is given and indeed there are leftovers.

There is no explanation as to how this occurred, there is no need to debate how this happened. What is clear is that in the midst of human need a man arrives, generously offering the best of what he has. And the prophet, with the eyes of faith, offers it to the people of God. The result is beyond any reasonable human expectation, and that’s the point. God is at work beyond our expectations!

Hospitality, the act of caring for one another, either out of our abundance or out of our pittance is the life force that creates community. From these acts of stewardship and hospitality flow the abundance of God. God can take a little and do a lot!

There is a YouTube video I watched not so long ago that speaks to hospitality and community building. A man walks around a food court and asks people to share their food. He’s very polite, he just says he is hungry and would they happen to have any extra food to share. Every single person sitting there with bags full of food or heaps of food on their plates says there is not enough to share. Most are polite too, although some are not.

The man and his hidden camera men leave the mall food court and walk outside. They see a homeless man sitting on the grass and quickly decide to buy him a bag of food. Two of the three go and give the homeless man the food and a drink. Then they leave. A few moments later the man comes up to the homeless man and says “I’m really hungry. Do you have anything you could share?”

It only takes a minute for the homeless man to offer him whatever he would like out of the bag. He invites the young man to sit down with him and they talk and eat together. Generosity, hospitality, abundance.

God can take a little and do a lot.

There is an absurdity to this text that cannot be overlooked. What we have received is a message that is countercultural. Our lives are often so similar to that of the servants words “How can I set this small amount before 100 people.”

We budget our resources and our time with a careful eye to the limitations we see present. We tell ourselves “there are only so many hours in the day.” And “a penny saved is a penny earned.” When we design even our church budgets we are very careful to be prudent and make sure that we can afford to pay for every program that is proposed.[1]

We would never put Elisha in charge of the budget or even in charge of planning a church potluck! That would be reaching beyond the bounds of sanity.

Too often we focus on the need and how big and overwhelming it seems to us. We let that paralyze us, keep us from doing anything other than nodding our heads and saying, “yes, yes, that is so sad.”

But, remember, God can take a little and do a lot.

What would happen if, instead of looking at all the need, we started by looking at what God has done? If we first considered how we have been fed, would we see the abundance that allows us to feed others?

God takes our little gifts, our little efforts and blesses them beyond our understanding. God has taken this little denomination and used it to bless people in other countries with the good news of the gospel. God has taken the gifts of children and turned them into feasts. God has taken our stories and turned them into witnesses for his saving grace. God has taken this church and allowed us to reach out with love to so many through the Angel Tree, through the Pumpkin Patch, through the blessing of the animals! God is using our relationship with Church Street to show both denominations that we can work worship and serve together! God can take a little and do a lot.

So what are we willing to offer to God today? Will we offer our time? Will we offer our talents? Will we offer our tithes? Will we offer our lives? No matter how small we may feel, no matter that the world may say, it is not enough, we must be bold like Elisha and claim the truth found in the word of God. God can take a little and do a lot!

---

[1] Douglas T. King Feasting on the Word Year b Volume 3 (Westminster John Knox Press, 2009), 269