2 Kings 5:1-19
This blog post is an excerpt from the booklet entitled, "Women of the Bible" - Volume 1.
It is written as if this Little Maid is sharing her heart directly with the reader.
Thank you for allowing the author to use poetic license throughout this article while seeking to stay true to the Biblical account of The Little Maid's life.
And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. - 2 Kings 5:2
The Bible calls me a little maid, but God still allowed me to have great influence on a powerful man. I was the servant to Naaman’s wife. Naaman was the captain of the host of the king of Syria. He was a great, honorable, mighty man of valor - BUT, he was a leper. Leprosy was a dreaded disease. There was no cure and those who were found to be infected were usually banished from society, so others would not ‘catch’ the disease. If God had not put me in Naaman’s path, Naaman probably would not have escaped this custom even though his service was of great value to the king. I believe God orchestrated my place in Naaman’s life because I am from Israel and have been taken captive by the Syrians as the servant to this ruler’s wife. Though I did not desire this place of bondage, God has a way of positioning people in situations where He will receive glory through trials. You see as an Israelite, I have already learned to worship and trust in God. I had heard of the prophet Elisha and how God has used him. I fully believe I serve a God of miracles. It is from this faith that I will share my heart with Naaman’s wife. I have chosen not to become angry because of my circumstances but rather to fulfill God’s purpose for my life where He has placed me. This heart attitude is what God uses to bring success to Naaman’s situation. I was able to speak to Naaman’s wife when the Lord gave me an opportunity. I told her there was a prophet in Samaria named Elisha that could help him to be healed from his leprosy. Through a series of events, Naaman comes to the door of the Prophet Elisha’s house. He comes in all his royalty expecting to be catered to and served, but Elisha sends his servant, Gehazi, to tell him to “go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.” Naaman is insulted! He questions that there must be far better rivers in which he could wash. The Jordan was known for being muddy and dirty. But if the other clean rivers could have healed him, he would have already tried that. Still he did not believe he could become clean in dirty water. Yet, Naaman needed a miracle. He needed the healing that only God could bring. God always delights in doing the impossible. After much convincing, Naaman humbled himself and did as Elisha had said. He dunked himself into the dirty Jordan River seven times. To his amazement, he was healed! His flesh became as that of a little child! God had performed a miracle. Naaman makes a beautiful statement, “Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel.” He forsakes the sun-god, Rimmon, of the Syrians. The Bible ends the story by saying, “Naaman went out a leper, as white as snow.”
The story of the Little Maid has many lessons we can apply:
* This is a beautiful picture of salvation. We who know the Lord are still sinners, but we are forgiven. When God looks down from Heaven, He sees the blood applied to our hearts and we are as white as snow in His eyes. That is a miracle! * Well-spoken advice shared in a time of great need will be heeded at some level. The listener may not acknowledge you in the moment, but you can be sure they will tuck it away in their mental files. No matter how large or small our realm of influence, we carry the message of Jesus Christ with us. God says His Word will not return unto Him void. * In Scripture, the humble and lowly are exalted above the high and mighty. Let us watch out that we do not think of ourselves as being better than others. Jesus tells us that the first will be last and the last first. This story shows us that names are not important, but our words, actions, and character are. The name of Jesus is to be above every name – our position or title in this life never outweighs His greatness. What matters the most is what is in our heart and what comes out our mouth. Do we glorify Him even in tough times or when we do not feel well? * Every morning, all of us should yield our lives and words to the Lord. We should ask the Holy Spirit to control everything that day and to give us the victory over the world, the flesh and the devil. Why is this so hard to remember? Complaint and criticism come so much more naturally to me than I care to admit, yet this is the very spirit that sways us in the wrong direction. In turn, the positive words we speak can influence others for good and for God.
She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. - Proverbs 31:26
Death and life are in the power of the tongue. - Proverbs 18:21
* We need to give the Gospel to everyone and not be a respecter of persons. * Even a child or teenager can be greatly used of God. He chose the little maid so that others can see that even the youngest among us are special to Him and can make a difference for God. We need to encourage children and teenagers to use their influence to bring people to the Lord (Proverbs 20:11). * We all have a purpose to fulfill in this life as Christian women. We need to ask God to show us what it is that He has for us. * Be an encouragement to others even when your heart is not in it or you are going through hard times. The little maid is a perfect example of how you can “Bloom Where You Are Planted.” * Though we do not know all the circumstances, we do know the Little Maid was far from home and separated from her family. There must have been times where she felt lowly, out of place, and even fearful. Where did she get the boldness to speak about this man’s condition? The Bible says in Psalm 56:3, “In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.” * She was able to put her own feelings aside in order to help someone else and ultimately saw God receive the glory. Where is your focus? Is it on the pain? Is it on the negative? Turn your eyes upon Jesus and what He can do. God can turn evil into good. Trust Him! Then your story can have a happy ending like hers did. * Often I have found that broken hearted people can be the most loving of Christians. How? Psalm 147:3, “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” I want to be like this young girl who loved even though hers was less than an ideal situation. * Ask God to give you compassion for others so He can use your influence to help others turn to God just like this Little Maid did.
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