(This blog entry was written by Travis Steinmetz)
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles." And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said." (2 Chronicles 32:7, 8)
Where did Hezekiah's confidence come from? It surely was not from what he saw taking place around him. The Assyrian army was taking over every land, and even had taken over every other fortified city in Judah, and now they were focusing in on Jerusalem. But Hezekiah would not let the ears of his men be swayed by what the field commander of Assyria was saying. So Hezekiah goes before the Lord.
"And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: "O Lord, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God. They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by men's hands. Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God." (2 Kings 19:15, 16, 18, 19)
So when people are spewing out lies about us, what do we do? Do we stand our ground and fight back? Do we lash out at them? What about when people spew out lies about our God, or mock Him? Does He need us to defend Him? Does He need us to make ourselves look foolish because of our reaction? No. He is God. Hezekiah teaches us a good lesson today. If he would have attacked back at Assyria, he and all of his people would surely have been destroyed. But he did not fight back. He turned to the well from which he received his strength. And wow, does God deliver!
"That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!" (2 Kings 19:35)
The lesson that we can learn from Hezekiah is that when we are overwhelmed by affliction, or when our backs are against the wall, we have a God who listens, who hears our prayers, and who intercedes on our behalf. The question is: why don't we pray? Why don't we turn to God? He has shown us that He can get people out of the bleakest of situations, but we still don't turn to Him. The challenge today is to turn to God in our time of need, and see what He can do. I'll bet He can do far more than we thought possible!
Where did Hezekiah's confidence come from? It surely was not from what he saw taking place around him. The Assyrian army was taking over every land, and even had taken over every other fortified city in Judah, and now they were focusing in on Jerusalem. But Hezekiah would not let the ears of his men be swayed by what the field commander of Assyria was saying. So Hezekiah goes before the Lord.
"And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: "O Lord, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God. They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by men's hands. Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God." (2 Kings 19:15, 16, 18, 19)
So when people are spewing out lies about us, what do we do? Do we stand our ground and fight back? Do we lash out at them? What about when people spew out lies about our God, or mock Him? Does He need us to defend Him? Does He need us to make ourselves look foolish because of our reaction? No. He is God. Hezekiah teaches us a good lesson today. If he would have attacked back at Assyria, he and all of his people would surely have been destroyed. But he did not fight back. He turned to the well from which he received his strength. And wow, does God deliver!
"That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!" (2 Kings 19:35)
The lesson that we can learn from Hezekiah is that when we are overwhelmed by affliction, or when our backs are against the wall, we have a God who listens, who hears our prayers, and who intercedes on our behalf. The question is: why don't we pray? Why don't we turn to God? He has shown us that He can get people out of the bleakest of situations, but we still don't turn to Him. The challenge today is to turn to God in our time of need, and see what He can do. I'll bet He can do far more than we thought possible!
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