~2 Kings 5:10-12 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. 11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. 12 [Are] not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

As I read through 2 Kings 5 this morning, I couldn’t help but see myself in Naaman. As much as I hated to admit it, I remembered times that I tried to help God along in His plans for my life. I thought, “Certainly God didn’t mean that I should do that! I’ll do it this way!”

Was I so different from Naaman? How many times have we known what to do because God’s word is clear, but we try to go our way and make our way fit to God’s word? Here’s a good example: a woman decides to marry an unbeliever with hopes that she can lead him to salvation. The Bible says that we are not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:14). Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. said,”It’s never right to do wrong in order to get a chance to do right.” Is the woman in our example any different than Naaman not wanting to be cleansed from his leprosy because he had to cleanse himself in the dirty Jordan River? He had different plans – there were a couple of cleaner rivers that he could use. Naaman walked away in a rage, according to the Scriptures. He was told to do one thing but his pride/his desire was egging him on to do things his own way. Are his motives any different than those of the woman in our example? Each wanted to do things his/her own way.

God’s way is always the right way, amen? He does not have harmful thoughts toward me so why should I doubt His word? Why do I think I need to help Him along in His plans for me?

~Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. 13 And ye shall seek me, and find [me], when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Seeking after God and His will for my life brings peace. Jeremiah 29:11 says that God has an expected end for me. He knows all things – He knows what is best for me. Therefore, why should I want anything in my life that goes against His will? After all, God says He thinks thoughts of peace toward me. Therefore, nothing in His plans would cause confusion. Why would I want to do anything else but follow His word and His will?