Accepting the Easy Task

Not everything we do needs to be so hard. When you think about what God may be asking of you, allow yourself to believe it might be the easier road.

Consider ease

Spiritual directors sometimes see people who assume God wants them to suffer, or at least break a sweat, when they consider God’s invitation. That could be the case, but then there’s the story of Naaman (2 Kings 5), the military man with leprosy. When his predicament came to the prophet Elisha, word was sent back that Naaman should wash seven times in the Jordan River, and he would be healed.

Naaman balked. Elisha had not even shown up to perform the healing. And washing in a dirty river was too easy (and perhaps considered below his station in life) for Naaman to consider.

Consider ordinary

But one of his servants pointed out, “If the prophet had asked you to do something difficult, wouldn’t you have done it? Go wash and be cleaned!”

Naaman finally agreed and the story tells us “his flesh was restored.” Naaman accepted that what God asked of him was easy and ordinary. Just washing in a dirty river.

Listen to your desires and talent

When discerning what God is inviting you to do with your life, don’t assume it’s going to be hard or extraordinary. Many times, the invitation grows out of our desires, talent, and skills. Perhaps the hard thing to do is trust that we don’t have to look for miracles or a flashy vision accompanying the invitation.

The hard task might be accepting the grace of ease.