Monday of the 3rd week of Lent
Theme: God works in mysterious ways
The 1st reading from 2nd Kings presents to us the story of Naaman the commander of the king of Syria, who was cured of his leprosy by the prophet Elisha. When it is time for God to glorify himself in our life, he makes use of different means to achieve it. In the case of Naaman he made use of both the maid from Israel and the prophet Elisha. The ways of God are different from our human ways, so we must try at all times to align ourselves with the word and direction of God; he never gets it wrong. Naaman could not believe the means through which God was going to heal him, as directed by the prophet Elisha; again God made use of those around him to convince him to go ahead and do what the prophet asked him to do. He listened to them and he was restored to good health. Let us learn to trust in Gods process, even when we do not understand what he is directing us to do, just like Naaman. One thing we must always know is that God will never lead us astray. The action of Naaman after his healing is also worthy of emulation. He returned back to the prophet Elisha in appreciation for what God has done for him through the prophet, and made a proclamation of faith; “Behold I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel”.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, we are encouraged today in a special way to always listen to the voice of the Lord, no matter who brings it to us. The word of God is still effective and powerful, irrespective of who the bearer is, or the preacher. The mistake we make sometimes is that we take things fore-granted because we know the person who brought us the word of God. That is exactly the situation in which Jesus found himself in today’s gospel, they knew him and found it to accept the word of God that he brought to them; by so doing losing the blessings they would have received. A similar situation like that of Naaman in the 1st reading, but Naaman listened to his servant and did what the prophet Elisha told him and he was restored to health. Dearly beloved in Christ, always remember that the ways of God are different from our human ways. God decides to use whoever he wants, in any given situation.
May God bless his words in our hearts. Peace be with you.