Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Then Naaman said, ‘If not, please let two mule-loads of earth be given to your servant; for your servant will no longer offer burnt-offering or sacrifice to any god except the Lord.”
NL Daily Devotion for Wednesday, November 6, 2024
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
This passage is about gratitude. When Elisha heals Naaman, Naaman’s first instinct is to shower gifts on Elisha—material goods. His instinct is good. We should definitely show our thanks when we’ve been helped. But his idea of exactly how to express gratitude in this case were way off base. Elisha didn’t want money. For one thing, any power he used to heal Naaman wasn’t his own, but God’s. And God had no need of material possessions. Nor did Elisha want them, obviously, because he refused to accept them.
Naaman was at a loss. How, then, to appropriately show his appreciation for his healing? Then he hits on it. He realizes that the God who had done for him what no one else was able to deserves his loyalty and devotion. Instead of insisting on giving Elisha something, he instead asks him for something—soil from the land of God’s people—so that he can bring it to his own home and create holy ground on which to worship God. It’s a little over the top, maybe, at least by our standards. But there is definitely a lesson in it for us.
Sure, we can show our appreciation for someone’s help by giving them a card or baking them some cookies or giving them a little gift. But the best expression of gratitude is turning around and paying it forward. Finding opportunities to be of love and service to God—the ultimate source of all good things—through being of love and service to our neighbors.
How do I express my gratitude when someone does something kind for me?
