2nd Kings 5:17 NKJV “So Naaman said, ‘… please let your servant be given two mule-loads of earth; for your servant will no longer offer either burnt offering or sacrifice to other gods, but to the Lord.’”
An uneasy relationship existed between the nations of Aram and Israel, whose king Jehoram lost his father in a battle with Aram a few years before. The king of Aram heard of the power of Elisha and sent his valued commander Naaman to be healed of leprosy by this great prophet of Israel. The commander received his healing and in gratitude offered to pay Elisha. Elisha refused payment but granted Naaman’s request to bring “two mule-loads of earth” from Israel back to his homeland in Aram.
It was apparently Naaman’s plan to return home and erect an altar on dirt brought from the land of the one and only true God, the Lord God of Israel. Naaman would worship the God of his newly found faith on newly collected holy ground. Naaman may have been superstitious, or perhaps he thought it wise to keep a physical reminder of his new-found devotion to the Lord.
Naaman’s plan is not that unusual. Orthodox Jews prefer to be buried with dirt gathered from the Holy Land. Followers of Mohammed collect stones from Mecca. Some American Christians save water in a vial from the Jordan River where they were baptized. Relics of these kind can carry special meaning for a follower of any faith.
When Moses stood before the God of Israel at the burning bush in the wilderness of Horeb, the Lord commanded him, “...remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground” (Exodus 3.5). Anywhere God displays Himself is “holy ground.”
I stand on “holy ground” every day and depend on divine encounters to sustain my faith. I meet God when Jesus is revealed in my practice of PB & J (regular Prayer, Bible reading, and Journaling). This is the substance of my faith. It is my “holy ground” event. I need a couple “mule-loads” of holy dirt with me at all times to remind me of the God I serve and His purpose for my life. ---
I stand on “holy ground” every day and depend on divine encounters to sustain my faith. I meet God when Jesus is revealed in my practice of PB & J (regular Prayer, Bible reading, and Journaling). This is the substance of my faith. It is my “holy ground” event. I need a couple “mule-loads” of holy dirt with me at all times to remind me of the God I serve and His purpose for my life. ---
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2 comments:
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