Today a little girl shows me what I need to do. In the excerpt from 2 Kings, Naaman, the highly esteemed army commander, is a leper. It is a young Israeli slave girl, whose faith is strong, who tells him about a man of God who will cure him of his leprosy. She is convinced that the leprosy can and will be healed. Naaman is finally cured by the man of God, Elisha, after some missteps. This would not have happened if the young girl had not spoken up courageously. Do I speak up about my faith in God? Do I tell others of the overwhelming love, mercy, and pardon I’ve received from God? Why don’t I? What am I afraid of? In today’s Gospel from Luke, Jesus is saddened that he is not accepted in his hometown. If I can’t bring the message of God’s love to those I see every day, I don’t know to whom I can. I need to be like that little girl—have the unshakable faith of a child.
