Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”
– 2 King 5:15
Dear HBIC Family,
So, we are within ten days of my sabbatical. I must admit though that even that (ten days) seems both far away and entirely too close. The last few months have been heavy. As a church we have grieved and been comforted, we have been holding on to God and each other through some challenging waters, and we have lived to be a light in a world that can often seem only dark and broken.
I am very grateful to the church for the gift of sabbatical, to me and my family. I have never taken one of these before and so I feel incredibly blessed to be given this grace by you all. I’m still having a hard time imagining not being with you all for four months. While I am away, I will be intentional about connecting with some other churches in our region, but my prayerful hope is that, overall, this will be a season of rest, retreat, and renewal.
As I have prayed about these last two Sundays before sabbatical, I have wrestled with the Spirit about my remaining two messages. In the midst of all this, Pastor Lynda shared that she will be preaching the first sermon while I’m away on Hearing God. Pastor Brie then added that she will follow by preaching on Obeying God. I knew that I wanted to preach one Old Testament and then one New Testament passage. I also knew that I wanted to focus on loving God and loving one another.
So then, combining where I think they were going and where I felt like we should go in these next two weeks, this next sermon series With God, With Each Other was born. We will begin this week in 2 Kings 5 and the story of Naaman and his healing. Our focus however will be on Following God.
As you prepare for our time in worship together this Sunday, I would like to invite you to read and meditate on 2 King 5. As you reflect, I would like you to focus on the following questions:
What does it mean for you to follow God? And your family? Our church?
Where has God placed you, that you can use your voice to tell others of who God is?
In this season, how are you using all you’ve been given for God’s kingdom?
Where in your life, can the Holy Spirit, help your unbelief?
Where in your world, have you seen God’s healing touch?
What is one time you have missed what God was doing, and what did you learn from it?
Naaman’s story is about the power of witness in every circumstance, faith surrounded by unbelief, and healing what seemed incurable. It is also a story that helps us better understand who God is and why our God is worthy of all our worship and praise. It is a story about witness, being reliant on God alone, and what life with God can look like. It is a story about Following God, and I’m excited we will be learning from it together this week.
What a blessing to know that what people mean for evil, God is still with us there and working for our good and the good of the world. What a grace to rely on God and to be empowered by the Holy Spirit even when our voice seems too meek and humble. And what an honor to follow God – our God who sees us, our God who heals us, and our God who welcomes us in the work of the harvest, the work of the kingdom.
May the Lord continue to bless and keep you all.
Love in Christ,
Pastor Hank (2 Kings 5:15)
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