God's footsteps

 

Our OT lesson, brings a story of a powerful man on edge. He is ill of Leprosy which is a serious contagious skin disease. We can only imagine how frustrating it was for an Army General! No more NATO meetings, may be no more friends, dermatologists may have tried but to no avail. We come to discover that eventually his healing would come from an unlikely source: His own household! Unfortunately, often it takes a crisis for us to open our eyes to see where God is at work in our lives. When our frustrations are high, we don’t see well! our responses may vary: Some of us may just stay still, not knowing what to do, and others may be combative like Jonah before he ended up in the belly of the fish and realize we cannot outrun God! In the middle of our anxiety and frustrations, we are more likely to totally miss God’s footsteps in our lives. This General found God’s footsteps in his own home, they led to his healing. Today my hope is that, we would discover from Holy Scriptures that, whatever challenges or obstacles are in our lives, that Jesus is right there in the middle of it, trying to show us the Footsteps to walk in! He loves us that much! That’s why He pursues us so we can get to know His Father, the God of Israel!

A while back, a deacon was preaching and told us about how hazy our vision becomes when we are on the rodeo. As you are being tossed around, your immediate focus is holding on, you don’t think about a strategy of how to stay on the horse. But other people have a better perspective than you; they can tell you what is actually happening. The Syrian General was in the middle of the hazy vision. Can you imagine a person like Colin Powell, a 4-star general in the same situation? We don’t wish leprosy on him!  He couldn’t possibly do well his responsibilities, if he had Leprosy. None of us could. So much frustrations: It’s like having Good health insurance, best doctors no healing! Perhaps, God is calling us to calm down and evaluate where we are at spiritually.  For e.g. do we listen well when we are frustrated? This Syrian General could have dismissed that tiny voice in the back of his kitchen, but he didn’t. He did listen after grumbling a little bit but he found God’s footsteps leading to the way forward. The knowledge of the God of Israel was in his own household! This little Jewish slave girl knew and had faith in the powerful God of Israel, unlike the King of Israel who couldn’t see that!

Just like this General, we need the God of Israel desperately in the middle of our anxieties and frustrations, Jesus tells us that if we ask anything in his name, we would receive it. Perhaps, we are being tossed around by life too much, that our vision has become hazy, and therefore we are unable to see God’s footsteps to walk in. Somehow, we need courage to do all that it takes to listen to God. This is no easy task! Prayer makes a difference, often Jesus went to the mountains to pray! Go into your room alone, cry out to God to intervene (Romans 8). We also need humility. God uses very simple and very insignificant means to heal. The General grumbled at the rivers of Israel, if he was asked to do triple back flips, would he have done it? We need to humble ourselves and pray like the ten lepers (That’s vulnerability): “Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners.” It is often said that accurate self-knowledge can be painful! We should be willing to evaluate everything we do, so we can improve. So how can we see God’s footsteps?

Learn to listen to God! Maybe we need healing in a particular area of our lives! Ask the Lord! Maybe we need to be more forgiving of others when they sin against us, maybe spending more time seeking God alone, or in the community, whatever it is, that’s God’s footprints ahead of you. God prepares those deeds, ahead of you, for you to walk in. Ephesians 2: 10

That’s how this God of Israel loves us! That’s his language of love for us! He loved us first! And through OT stories, He is telling us Gentiles and Israelites alike that: “I wish you knew how crazy I am about you, I want to heal your soul, I want you to be one with me through Jesus Christ My Son, so you can experience our peace inside you.”