Based on 2 Kings 5:1-14
The “leader” is the one who shows up a minute or two later than everyone else, has everything handed to him, and saves the day to the applause of the crowd.
But that wasn’t the case for Naaman, commander of the army of Aram.
He was a well-known warrior who suffered from an embarrassing disease – leprosy. And according to this passage, God seemed determined to use this embarrassing illness to humble the man.
Why? Perhaps, because…
Every leader has points of brokenness and pain that end up becoming our greatest points of weakness and failure as long as we’re not willing to humble ourselves to deal with them.
So for Naaman, the commander of one of the most successful armies in the world, confession and humility preceded his ability to move forward in life.
And isn’t it that way for all of us? If we could just do what is necessary to deal with the pain, we’d be so much better off. We’d be able to move forward.
One old pastor titled a message on this text, “Seven Ducks in a Dirty Pond,” which seems trite. I wouldn’t recommend using that title. But I would recommend talking about the necessary humbling that has to happen before any of us can reach our full, real potential.