Main Verse: Isaiah 38 and 2 Kings 20:1-11

Good morning!

            From the time of King David to the reign of Hezekiah Israel had been like a roller-coaster because the nation would follow the King’s lead in its relationship with the God of their ancestors. When Isaiah told Hezekiah, “Put your house in order because you will die,” the king accepted the message without a qualm. When Isaiah told the king, “You are going to live,” Hezekiah asked for proof which, I believe, created an opening for the enemy of our soul; For Hezekiah, the “opening” was “Let the clock go back 15 steps to the time of Hezekiah’s father Ahaz. Ahaz was a bad king who, when the nation was in trouble, hired the Assyrians to come and save Judea from the Edomites without considering the price Judeah would pay for Assyria’s help; to add insult to injury, Ahaz tasked his High Priest Uriah to build an altar like the Assyrians had (2 Kings 16:10-18). So, the last 15 years of Hezekiah’s life were anticlimactic compared to the first 30 years.

            Hezekiah’s prayer effectively changed God’s mind and building on the first faith lesson would have caused Hezekiah to be an unstoppable force in his time. When Hezekiah asked for proof of God’s word, the proverbial brake lights came on. The Lord never gives us a “play-by-play” account of what will happen in our future based on the choice or choices we make today; yes, the Lord has great plans for us but our choices either say, “Yes Lord” or, “Not so fast” (Jeremiah 29:11). I cannot encourage you enough today considering all that is going on in our world, to be faithful to the Lord. The Lord will give you the desires of your heart when you ask in faith, but you must be willing to bear the responsibility (Psalms 37:4, James 1:5-8).

I.H.S.

MK