This Is A Day Of Good News

There were four men who had a skin disease. They were at the entrance of the gate of Samaria. They said to one another, "Why should we stay here until we die? Suppose we say, 'We'll go into the city.' There isn't any food there, and we'll die. But if we stay here, we'll die anyway. So let's go over to Aram's army camp. Let's give ourselves up. If they spare us, we'll live. If they kill us, we'll die."

At sunset they got up. They went to Aram's army camp. They arrived at the edge of it. But no one was there. The Lord had caused the soldiers of Aram to hear a noise. It sounded like chariots and horses and a huge army. So the soldiers spoke to one another. They said, "Listen! The king of Israel has hired the Hittite and Egyptian kings. He has paid them to attack us!" So they had gotten up and had run away at sunset. They had left their tents and horses and donkeys behind. They had left the camp as it was. And they had run for their lives.

The men who had a skin disease arrived at the edge of the camp. They entered one of the tents. They ate and drank. Then they carried away silver, gold and clothes. They went off and hid them. They returned and entered another tent. They took some things from it and hid them also.

But then they said to one another, "What we're doing isn't right. This is a day of good news. And we're keeping it to ourselves. If we wait until sunrise, we'll be punished. Let's go at once. Let's report this to the royal palace."

So they went. They called out to the people who were guarding the city gates. They told them, "We went into Aram's army camp. No one was there. We didn't hear anyone. The horses and donkeys were still tied up. The tents were left just as they were."

The people who guarded the gates shouted the news. It was reported inside the palace.

2 Kings 7:3-11

The four lepers had good news to share. They had stumbled into the Syrian camp and found it deserted. After helping themselves to food and loot, they remembered the starving people of Samaria, shut in as a result of the Syrian siege. They knew they needed to act, rather than for themselves, for the kingdom, and they did.

They went back and reported what they had seen. Do you know someone who needs to know what Jesus has done? Don’t make excuses for what you lack in abilities. You were given a gift. Use it.

When we are thankful for what we have, we want to share it with others.

Our Daily Bread – May 26, 2010