By Pastor Johnie Akers
2 Kings 5:14, “Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.”
Naaman had a problem that water alone could not fix. He was a mighty man of valor, a respected captain, and a man of great authority—but beneath the uniform was a man with leprosy.
When the prophet Elisha told him to wash seven times in the Jordan River, Naaman was offended. He expected something dramatic. Instead, God gave him a simple instruction: “Go dip.”
The first dip did not change him. Neither did the second. The third brought no visible difference. The fourth and fifth may have tested his patience. The sixth probably made him wonder, “How much longer?” But Naaman dipped again. And on the seventh dip, something happened. His flesh was restored, and he was clean.
There is a lesson here for all of us: Just because you don’t see a change doesn’t mean God isn’t working.
Some people receive their breakthrough after one prayer. Others have to pray again and again. Some people walk away from their past after one encounter with God. Others have to keep surrendering, keep trusting, keep forgiving, and keep believing until the chains finally fall away.
Don’t quit on the sixth dip. The sixth dip may look exactly like the first. You may still have the same struggle, the same burden, the same tears, and the same unanswered questions. But obedience is never wasted.
Perhaps God is asking you to dip again. Pray again. Believeagain. Forgive again. Get up again. Go to church again. Trust Him again. You may be closer than you realize.
Naaman didn’t know that his miracle was waiting on the other side of his next act of obedience. He only knew what God had told him to do. Sometimes faith means obeying God before we see the evidence.
So, if you’ve dipped six times and nothing has changed, don’t walk away from the river. Dip one more time. Your seventh dip could be the one that changes everything.
Don’t quit before the seventh dip.
To establish the people of Central Appalachia in the principles of the Kingdom of God, and thereby releasing them to rise above all cultural, historical, economic, and generational limitations so they may live abundantly within their privileges and covenant as sons and daughters of God.