Theme of the Week: Prayer
Bible Verse: Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. Psalm 86:11
Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 18:17–19:19
Hezekiah was king in Jerusalem. A powerful force from the north, the Assyrian army, was intent on sacking Jerusalem and dragging all of her people off to bondage.
The king of Assyria, Sennacherib, sent a letter to Hezekiah telling him that Jerusalem was going to fall. Every other kingdom that stood against Sennacherib had already fallen. Every other god had failed, and now Hezekiah’s God was going to fail, too. It was a terrible and desperate situation for God’s people.
There were all kinds of things that Hezekiah could have done in that moment. He could have acquiesced to Sennacherib’s demands. He could have whined and complained to the Lord. He could have blamed those around him. He could have scrambled to try and come up with a plan despite the hopelessness of the situation.
Instead, he takes the letter, lays it before the Lord, and basically says, “You see what our enemies have said. Should I believe it? Will you save us?”
He turned to the Lord in faith and dependence. He wanted God to speak clearly through the lies he was hearing. He wanted to hear God’s voice and God’s opinion first and foremost.
And God told Him the truth. He would rescue Hezekiah and the Jews. And then He did!
So many times, we listen to the voices around us. The voices that tell us lies.
Some say that in order to succeed we need to break the rules.
Some say that we will never amount to anything, that we always have been and always will be a disappointment.
Some say that the only way we will feel fulfilled is if we give in to sin.
Are those sayings true?
We, like Hezekiah, need to lay those statements before the Lord and ask Him for His opinion, His thoughts on the matter.
It is His clarity that we must have. He will tell us exactly what we need to know, and He will rescue us in our time of need.
Prayer: Lord, there are so many voices around me, in my head, in my past. I have been listening to them and believing them for too long. I have been allowing them to dictate my identity and my actions. I want to hear Your voice. Speak to me, Lord. I lay before You all those statements and accusations and I wait to hear from You. Amen.
Reflection: What kinds of statements have you heard about your identity and your purpose? If you shared them with some faithful brothers in the Lord, would they affirm those statements as true and from the Lord or not? Are you tired of listening to lies? Are you tired of being led around by mistruths? Are you ready to hear from the Lord?
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