The Power of a Godly Life

In 2 Kings 5 we read of a young Israelite girl, whose name we don’t even know, that had been kidnapped and carried away to Syria. How easily she could have been bitter against God for allowing this to happen. And certainly she could have been angry with the people she was working for as a slave.

So when her master Naaman was stricken with leprosy, she could have thought, He deserves it. But that isn’t the way she felt at all. She was concerned for him. Her heart went out to him. And she saw the opportunity to tell Naaman about a prophet in Israel named Elisha who could pray for him. Elisha was Elijah’s successor. God was working through him and had used him to raise someone from the dead. Like Elijah, he had miracle-working power.

This girl had somehow heard about Elisha. So she said to Naaman’s wife, "I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria. He would heal him of his leprosy" (2 Kings 5:3).

It reminds me of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, young Israelites who also were taken captive. They were brought to Babylon, where the king changed their names. But he couldn’t change their hearts. They walked closely with God, as did this young woman.

Imagine how she felt when she heard how God had healed Naaman. I wonder if she ever thought God would use someone like her to reach someone as significant as Naaman. It’s a wonderful thing when you have lived such a godly life that when you speak to someone, they listen. This girl earned the right to bring the message she did probably because she was such a great person and a hard worker. She held fast to her faith, even in a foreign land.