naaman's servant girl
A young Israelite girl is in a bad situation. She has been taken captive by a foreign nation and is a slave to the wife of a powerful man. Life is not what it was supposed to be for her. We can imagine all the feelings she must have had. Her situation is not okay, and it is not what we would want for anyone! But somehow, she is faithful enough to still act as an instrument of God’s healing and love, even in this foreign place. She knows about the prophet Elisha, and she believes God can work through him to heal her captor’s disease. She tells the woman she serves about Elisha and sets in motion a series of events that will not only lead to Naaman’s physical healing, but also to him coming to serve and know God. There are also some interesting political dynamics at play if you want to dig in a little more!
Even this powerless young girl was able to act as an instrument of healing. Like her, we who know the God of Love can also help bring healing to others. Look around you. Who needs healing? Who are the healers you can help? What can you do to bring God’s healing and hope to the world? How can even a young child help bring healing and hope?
Even this powerless young girl was able to act as an instrument of healing. Like her, we who know the God of Love can also help bring healing to others. Look around you. Who needs healing? Who are the healers you can help? What can you do to bring God’s healing and hope to the world? How can even a young child help bring healing and hope?
Read It: 2 Kings 5:1-19a
Do It
Healthcare is a big deal right now. There are so many ways we can help bring healing! Look around your community and see what the needs are, then find one or two that you have the ability to help with. With anything you do, practice sharing God’s good news as you do your “good deed.” Include a note that tells people why you are doing what you are doing - you are an instrument of the Great Healer! Here are a few ideas to get you started.
1. Make masks and donate them to schools and other organizations.
2. Contact a local school nurse and ask what is one supply that would be helpful, then shop for that item with your child(ren) and donate it.
3. Make cards for healthcare workers or for patients (or people in nursing care facilities) who are isolated. You might be surprised how much a simple 2 year-old's scribbles along with a one or two sentence message might mean to someone!
4. If you have a child with a heart for activism, let them record a short video about the things they are doing to help protect their community, including a call to action for others. Post it on the social media of their choosing.
5. If you have a personal connection with someone who is ill, create a care package for them.
1. Make masks and donate them to schools and other organizations.
2. Contact a local school nurse and ask what is one supply that would be helpful, then shop for that item with your child(ren) and donate it.
3. Make cards for healthcare workers or for patients (or people in nursing care facilities) who are isolated. You might be surprised how much a simple 2 year-old's scribbles along with a one or two sentence message might mean to someone!
4. If you have a child with a heart for activism, let them record a short video about the things they are doing to help protect their community, including a call to action for others. Post it on the social media of their choosing.
5. If you have a personal connection with someone who is ill, create a care package for them.
Pray It
God, even when life isn’t going the way it should, even when we can’t be with the people we love, even when nothing is familiar, you are here. Make us healers in your world. Help us to see the places where the world’s needs and our gifts match. Amen.
Extra
Teaching Children to Help Others
"Children are never too young to learn the value and joy of helping others."
How to teach your kids to help others
"My kids were 7, 5, and 2. They were exhibiting signs of the entitlement culture that surrounds us. I wanted to find ways to build a stronger family and stronger character in my children...."
"Children are never too young to learn the value and joy of helping others."
How to teach your kids to help others
"My kids were 7, 5, and 2. They were exhibiting signs of the entitlement culture that surrounds us. I wanted to find ways to build a stronger family and stronger character in my children...."
