prosper – Praying Pint

52.p. Wilderness – 16.v. “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart”

Deu 28:21  The LORD will make the pestilence stick to you until he has consumed you off the land that you are entering to take possession of it. The LORD will strike you with wasting disease and with fever, inflammation and fiery heat, and with drought and with blight and with mildew. They shall pursue you until you perish. And the heavens over your head shall be bronze, and the earth under you shall be iron. The LORD will make the rain of your land powder. From heaven dust shall come down on you until you are destroyed. “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. And your dead body shall be food for all birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth, and there shall be no one to frighten them away.  The LORD will strike you with the boils of Egypt, and with tumors and scabs and itch, of which you cannot be healed. The LORD will strike you with madness and blindness and confusion of mind, and you shall grope at noonday, as the blind grope in darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways. And you shall be only oppressed and robbed continually, and there shall be no one to help you.

Deu 28:34  so that you are driven mad by the sights that your eyes see.

Deu 28:37  And you shall become a horror, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples where the LORD will lead you away.

Deu 28:45  “All these curses shall come upon you and pursue you and overtake you till you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that he commanded you.

Deu 28:47  Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things,

Deu 28:58-59  “If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the LORD your God, then the LORD will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting.

Deu 28:61  Every sickness also and every affliction that is not recorded in the book of this law, the LORD will bring upon you, until you are destroyed.

Deu 28:63  And as the LORD took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the LORD will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you.

Deu 28:66-67  Your life shall hang in doubt before you. Night and day you shall be in dread and have no assurance of your life. In the morning you shall say, ‘If only it were evening!’ and at evening you shall say, ‘If only it were morning!’ because of the dread that your heart shall feel, and the sights that your eyes shall see.

The same variety of expression is used in these terrible curses, as in the preceding blessings, to intimate every kind of prosperity or adversity, personal, relative, and public.

If we do not keep God’s commandments, we not only come short of the blessing promised, but we lay ourselves under the curse, which includes all misery, as the blessing all happiness. Observe the justice of this curse. It is not a curse causeless, or for some light cause. The extent and power of this curse. Wherever the sinner goes, the curse of God follows; wherever he is, it rests upon him. Whatever he has is under a curse. All his enjoyments are made bitter; he cannot take any true comfort in them, for the wrath of God mixes itself with them. Many judgments are here stated, which would be the fruits of the curse, and with which God would punish the people of the Jews, for their apostacy and disobedience. We may observe the fulfilling of these threatenings in their present state. To complete their misery, it is threatened that by these troubles they should be bereaved of all comfort and hope, and left to utter despair. Those who walk by sight, and not by faith, are in danger of losing reason itself, when every thing about them looks frightful. (Henry)

Oh that our hearts and minds would grasp the holy blessings of God in light of the wrathful curses. Sin has a way of blinding us to only see blessings from God. Sin blinds us to the holiness of God. Neglect of His Word deafens our ears to the Holy Spirit’s conviction of sin.

May the Word of God open your hearts and minds to His holiness and give you a deep desire to honor and glorify Him more and more each day. We do not honor and glorify Jesus christ for the blessings we receive, but for who God is.

37.d. “Then I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD and blessed the LORD”

Genesis 24:39 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys. And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old, and to him he has given all that he has. My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell, but you shall go to my father’s house and to my clan and take a wife for my son.’ I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’ But he said to me, ‘The LORD, before whom I have walked, will send his angel with you and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son from my clan and from my father’s house. Then you will be free from my oath, when you come to my clan. And if they will not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’

“I came today to the spring and said, O LORD, the God of my master Abraham, if now you are prospering the way that I go, behold, I am standing by the spring of water. Let the virgin who comes out to draw water, to whom I shall say, “Please give me a little water from your jar to drink,” and who will say to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,” let her be the woman whom the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.’

“Before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her water jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ She quickly let down her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels drink also. Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her arms. Then I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD and blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to take the daughter of my master’s kinsman for his son. Now then, if you are going to show steadfast love and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.”

Eliezer – Abraham’s servant, doing service to his master, humble, a witness of God’s hand in his affairs, first-hand witness of God answering prayer on his journey, and surely witnessing the fulfillment of the promises and past blessings of God to Abraham. I am encouraged by how this servant relays his purpose and message.

God has blessed my master Abraham
What wealth Abraham has, has been given to him by God
Abraham’s only son was born late in the life of Sarah – an implied act of God
He was sent by his master
He was given specific instructions
He had concerns
He speaks of Abraham’s faith in God by angels being sent before him to prosper his journey
He told them of his prayer to the God of Abraham concerning specific actions at the well
He told them how God fulfilled this prayer
After this he requested an immediate decision as if to say, God’s hand is clearly in this and now you must decide if you will honor what has been said and give Rebekah to my master’s son as his wife?

There are many times in our lives that we want time to think things over before making a decision. Many of these times we are seeking God’s direction and discernment over the information that we have. Time and time again God will give discernment to those who seek His guidance and are surrendered to His purpose with willing obedience.

Then there are times like this where clear communication to the hand and working of God has been both given and, in part, witnessed. This is when waiting to make a decision adds no value. Nothing more can be said. I liken this to the point in your life when God has opened your ears, mind, and heart to His holiness, your sin, judgment (eternal life or death), and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is not the time to ask for time to think it over – nothing more can be said – accept it or reject it, the message is clear.

27.g. “I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Jeremiah 20:11 But the Lord is with me as a mighty, awesome One. Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and will not prevail. They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper. Their everlasting confusion will never be forgotten.

Isaiah 45:16   All of them are put to shame and confounded; the makers of idols go in confusion together.

Jeremiah 1:19   They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.”

Jeremiah 15:20     And I will make you to this people a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you, declares the LORD.

Deuteronomy 32:35-36    Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and their doom comes swiftly.’  For the LORD will vindicate his people and have compassion on his servants, when he sees that their power is gone and there is none remaining, bond or free.

Psalms 65:5    By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas;

Isaiah 41:10    fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Jeremiah 1:8   Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.”

God’s might and awesome power are greater than our pain, humiliation, rejection, fears, loneliness, and worries. When our heart cries out in humble surrender and all self-reliance is thrown by the wayside, God becomes bigger and our misery becomes smaller. Somehow when we do this we are transformed in our heart and become content to leave the matter to God and His awesome power and might and wisdom and strength.

Learning contentment seems easy for some and much harder for others. When I think about this I come to the conclusion it is a matter of the heart. When self-reliance is cast aside and the heart is trusting in God’s perfect loving and awesome strength there is a contentment that passes all human understanding. It is in God’s hands, my Heavenly Father. Not only is He able to handle what I have yielded/placed into His hands, but He will also carry me through all the pain, confusion, rejection, fear, loneliness, and worry. He will deliver me. I am His child. I can fully trust in Him no matter the outcome because He is God.

17.s. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Isaiah 49:5-6   And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength—  he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

Isaiah 53:10-12    Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Luke 9:23-24     And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Jesus’s thought of the cross just a few days away, His main concern was that God was glorified. His purpose on earth was to redeem, save, and demonstrate God’s love for mankind. It is hard for me to come close to understanding the commitment and longing and desire of Jesus to honor and glorify God, knowing what just a few days away would yield great physical and emotional pain. He knew what He was facing. He knew His purpose and was willing to die on the cross for it to honor and glorify God and redeem mankind.

I can wrap my mind around taking a bullet, fast death, for someone you love, but willing to be tortured, beaten, whipped, and nailed to a cross for the sins of every human being is an act of love so humble, pure, and holy it seems beyond understanding. What a Savior we have in Jesus Christ. In light of this, how should we live our lives? The writer of Hebrews said: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

16.y. “Who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness”

John 10:16 So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Isaiah 53:10-12     Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Philippians 2:6-8     who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Titus 2:14    who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

It is hard to imagine the grace, mercy, and love Jesus Christ willingly poured out on the world. The King of kings, Lord of Lords, Son of God, chose obedience to God the Father and willingly and with joy, went to the cross to bear our sins. Jesus had full authority to choose obedience to God’s will. He chose to give us life through His death and resurrection. It is good for us to remember the great price that was paid by the King of kings, Lord of Lords, Son of God. He did this for each individual person, yes YOU.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Though the offer/gift of grace, mercy, love, forgiveness, redemption, and salvation is offered to everyone it is not accepted, received, or believed by everyone. Many reject and deny this gift. Condemnation and eternal punishment await everyone who rejects and denies the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Today is the day of salvation. Trust in, cling to, and rely on Jesus Christ.

14.g. “For we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter”

Malachi 3:13 “Your words have been hard against me, says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ You have said, It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape.’”

Exodus 5:2    But Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.”

Isaiah 28:14-15    Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers, who rule this people in Jerusalem!  Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have an agreement, when the overwhelming whip passes through it will not come to us, for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;

Psalms 73:8-13    They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression.  They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth.  Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them.  And they say, “How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?”  Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches.

Zephaniah 1:12     At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are complacent, those who say in their hearts, ‘The LORD will not do good, nor will he do ill.’

Psalms 10:3   For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the LORD.

Psalms 73:12     Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches.

When our eyes to our hearts see things of this world that are pleasing they need to be viewed through the lens of God’s Word. It is easy to get lost and off-path with our lives when this lens is set aside. This lens of God’s Word keeps us revived and renewed in our walk with Him. The prince of this world would love to blind us with the glory and riches of this world. Sad to say but many are easily distracted and set aside God’s Word for the shiny things of this world. The void that is created is filled with things that seem right but are just right in the eyes of the prince of this world and those who are led astray. The void is filled with deception, false hope, and lies of promised satisfaction apart from Jesus Christ. This void leaves the heart empty and seeking more but never finding it. This void makes promises of joy, peace, rest, prosperity, and hope but never fulfills any lasting satisfaction. This void gives the heart a false sense of purpose.

A good gage of your heart can be and is revealed in and through God’s word. Through His Word we find purpose and meaning, temporal and eternal, wrath and love, anger and mercy, helplessness and courage, weakness and strength, worldly and Godly, sin and righteousness, deception and truth, evil and holy, judgment and forgiveness, lost and found, death and life, defiance and obedience, demons and angels, Satan and Jesus Christ, immorality and morality, dishonor and honor, criticism and praise, false and truth, despising and worshiping, pride and humility, greed and giving, vanity and worthy, hate and kindness, neglect and service, rejection and acceptance, etc…… When we spend time in God’s Word our lens through which we see our lives this side of eternity will make things of this world grow dim and things of Jesus Christ grow bright. There are no shortcuts or lukewarm complacent paths to the understanding and application of God’s Word in our lives. Spend time in His Word, seek it with a desire to know Him, and ask that your eyes to this world be opened to see all of its lies and deceptions.

12.b. “Until I went into the sanctuary of God”

Habakkuk 2:1 I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

Psalms 85:8    Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.

Jeremiah 12:1     Righteous are you, O LORD, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?

Psalms 73:16-17     But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task,  until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

Matthew Henry commentary; “When tossed and perplexed with doubts about the methods of our sovereign Lord, we must watch against temptations to be impatient. When we have poured out complaints and requests before God, we must observe the answers God gives by his word, his Spirit, and providences; what the Lord will say to our case. God will not disappoint the believing expectations of those who wait to hear what he will say unto them. All are concerned in the truths of God’s word. Though the promised favor be deferred long, it will come at last, and abundantly recompense us for waiting. The humble, broken-hearted, repenting sinner, alone seeks to obtain an interest in this salvation. He will rest his soul on the promise, and on Christ, in and through whom it is given. Thus he walks and works, as well as lives by faith, perseveres to the end, and is exalted to glory; while those who distrust or despise God’s all-sufficiency will not walk uprightly with him. The just shall live by faith in these precious promises, while the performance of them is deferred. Only those made just by faith shall live, shall be happy here and forever.

3.y. “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build”

Nehemiah 2:11 So I went to Jerusalem and was there three days. Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. And I told no one what my God had put into my heart to do for Jerusalem. There was no animal with me but the one on which I rode. I went out by night by the Valley Gate to the Dragon Spring and to the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that were broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal that was under me to pass. Then I went up in the night by the valley and inspected the wall, and I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, and I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest who were to do the work.

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” Then I replied to them, “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.”

Lamentations 3:45-46   You have made us scum and garbage among the peoples.  “All our enemies open their mouths against us;

Lamentations 2:8-9   The LORD determined to lay in ruins the wall of the daughter of Zion; he stretched out the measuring line; he did not restrain his hand from destroying; he caused rampart and wall to lament; they languished together.  Her gates have sunk into the ground; he has ruined and broken her bars; her king and princes are among the nations; the law is no more, and her prophets find no vision from the LORD.

Psalms 89:50-51     Remember, O Lord, how your servants are mocked, and how I bear in my heart the insults of all the many nations,  with which your enemies mock, O LORD, with which they mock the footsteps of your anointed.

Isaiah 35:3-4    Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.  Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”

Nehemiah went to Jerusalem sometime after he had sent Ezra and the first waves of exiles who had returned. These first to return had been there long enough to have married foreign women and have a child. Nehemiah came sometime after sending Ezra and the repentance and turning back to God of those first to come. Imagine what was going through his mind all the time they had been gone and reports coming back to him about the falling away, the repentance and turning back, and the status of the ruin of Jerusalem. He had to have had thoughts of thankfulness, hope, despair, and worry. Think about it. He had the heavy burden given to Him by God and he had seen the hand of God soften the heart of the king to allow them to return to Jerusalem only to have the people live in ways apart from God.

After he had been there 3 days, he went out at night to look over and observe the walls Jerusalem. That next morning he told the people, officials, leaders, and priests “let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” Nehemiah told them how the Hand of God had led his heart and what the King had said in response. The people listened and were encouraged and strengthened to consider and begin the work before them. Then comes the jeers and mocking and threats and rebukes of those foreigners living near them.

When we have been led by the hand of God to do “a great work” and have seen His hand paving the way we have to be aware of the opposition and trials that may still be ahead. Remember when God led Moses to speak to the Pharaoh, “let my people go” and sent signs and wonders 8 times to show the Israelites His power and leading, and to show Pharaoh the power of God. When Pharaoh had finally consented and let the people go there had to have been joy and encouragement in the hearts and minds of the Israelites. They had witnessed the power and leading of God. Then what happens? Pharaoh changes his mind and sends out his army with instruction to kill all of the Israelites. Then when they are faced with the Red Sea before them and the Egyptian army approaching from behind them did they call on God and rely on the same power and might of His leading, no they did not. God showed them once again His power and leading by parting the Red Sea and destroying the Egyptian army. God did not stop there He showed them power and leading by providing water and food and proved over and over again His presence and leading by displaying Himself to them as a cloud by day and fire by night. What did the people do? They rejected His leading and wonder in the wilderness for 40 years until that disbelieving generation was no more.

We see something different in Nehemiah, don’t we? We see a burdened, believing, and trusting heart willing to be led, strengthened and encouraged by what God has done and commissioned them to do. We see commitment and determination in the face of what seems overwhelming. We see a willingness to be led. We see the courage to face the tasks and opposition.

Saying close to God does not mean we will not see opposition, trials, and troubles but it does allow us to rely on, trust in, and cling to Him and see His mighty hand at work. Stand firm. Remain firm. Keep your eyes on Him and those trials and troubles will fade away as His purpose and plans are carried out in ways that only He can do.

2.x. But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction.

2 Chronicles 26:3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God, and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper. He went out and made war against the Philistines and broke through the wall of Gath and the wall of Jabneh and the wall of Ashdod, and he built cities in the territory of Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabians who lived in Gurbaal and against the Meunites. The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread even to the border of Egypt, for he became very strong. Moreover, Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate and at the Valley Gate and at the Angle, and fortified them. And he built towers in the wilderness and cut out many cisterns, for he had large herds, both in the Shephelah and in the plain, and he had farmers and vinedressers in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil. Moreover, Uzziah had an army of soldiers, fit for war, in divisions according to the numbers in the muster made by Jeiel the secretary and Maaseiah the officer, under the direction of Hananiah, one of the king’s commanders. The whole number of the heads of fathers’ houses of mighty men of valor was 2,600. Under their command was an army of 307,500, who could make war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy. And Uzziah prepared for all the army shields, spears, helmets, coats of mail, bows, and stones for slinging. In Jerusalem he made machines, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones. And his fame spread far, for he was marvelously helped, till he was strong. But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. But Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the Lord who were men of valor, and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the Lord God.” Then Uzziah was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests in the house of the Lord, by the altar of incense. And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they rushed him out quickly, and he himself hurried to go out, because the Lord had struck him. And King Uzziah was a leper to the day of his death, and being a leper lived in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the Lord.

Have I ever allowed my walk with God to drift? Have I ever been neglectful and complacent with His word and with listening and serving Him? Have I ever just said today is mine to do as I want? Have I ever allowed myself to seek and desire that which is self-centered, self-satisfying, prideful, greedy, and hurting to someone else? Have I pretended to be ok? Have I trusted in myself, my possessions, and my own actions? Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, and yes?

I have allowed my desire of Him to be taken over by desires for things of this world that are pleasing to me. I have allowed my pride to allow me to think I can handle things on my own. I have sought more for myself than seeking and humbly serving Jesus Christ. I know who I am and the tendencies I have to glorify and satisfy self. However, when I commit to start each day humbly serving Him and am studying His word I see the day in the newness that can only come from Jesus Christ. I hear the guiding whispers from His word speak into my heart and mind and soul. I am made aware of this sinful nature within me that shouts pride, hate, greed, unforgiveness, selfishness, and self-seeking desires. In His word I am able to make a distinction between serving, honoring, following, trusting, and obeying God and that which is not. I grow in understanding and knowledge. I find peace, joy and rest when I commit and yield to honor, follow, trust, and obey Him.

Uzziah’s actions are no different than what each of us has done. We may not be a leader of a nation but we all must be aware of the sinful nature knocking at our heart’s door.

Oh God, please allow us to see our sinfulness and be able to recognize it for what it is and make it clear that we have a choice before we commit to giving in. Give us eyes to see it and a mind to understand it so that we clearly know what we choose – to either give in to self or to commit and yield to You. Keep us on paths that honor you. Speak loud into our heart and mind. Fill us with more and more desire for You.

2.t. Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

2 Chronicles 24:1 Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. Jehoiada got for him two wives, and he had sons and daughters.

2 Chronicles 24:15 But Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and died. He was 130 years old at his death. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and his house. Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God, Why do you break the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.’” But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord. Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!” At the end of the year the army of the Syrians came up against Joash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus. Though the army of the Syrians had come with few men, the Lord delivered into their hand a very great army, because Judah had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Joash. When they had departed from him, leaving him severely wounded, his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed.

We can never underestimate the influence of those we allow ourselves to associate with. You would have thought Joash would have been firm in his walk with the Lord. He was led and counseled by the high priest Jehoiada from the time he was 7 yrs old and had become king. Joash did right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada. It is not as though Joash did not know what it meant to lead the people in full commitment to the Lord. He knew what was right yet still chose to listen to the princes of Judah and abandon the house of the Lord. They chose to worship idols and Joash followed along willingly. Even when Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, being led by the Spirit of God, called them out on their falling away, Joash chose to not listen and had Zechariah stoned.

Do you ever wonder how it is possible to have tasted the love, guidance, joy, peace, and blessings of God and people turn away from Him? So it is when we are living in prosperity and have been blessed by God with joy and peace. We so easily don’t see the need anymore for God in our lives, and if we do it is at arm’s length. It is almost as though we keep Him on speed dial in case we need His help but other than that there is no humble service, honor, reliance, or listening for His leading in our lives. We might not admit it but we intentionally choose to do this.

Think about a time when chaos, confusion, uncertainty, and trials hit you hard. Were you not calling out to God with all your heart, mind, and soul? Weren’t you relying on and trusting in Him? Weren’t you constantly seeking Him? Now compare this time of your life and the earnestness in which you sought and flowed after God to how you are in times of peace, prosperity, and blessings. Is there a difference? Do you seek to be in His presence with the same level of intensity? Do you seek to hear Him speak into your life? Do you hunger and thirst for Him in the same way? If not, then confess it and repent and turn away from this lukewarm commitment. Remember the price that was paid. Remember the love of Jesus Christ willingly given for the redemption of your sin. Remember this world is not our home, we are only passing through. Remember are a child of the King and ought to live to honor Him.

No one is immune to the attacks on our heart, mind, and soul from either self or Satan. We need to take inventory of our heart, mind, and soul. We need to take inventory of the time we spend in His Word, the time we spend in prayer, the time we spend in honoring, the time we spend in listening, and time we spend in thought and action. His word should be on our heart, in our mind, and flooding our soul. Our ears should desire to hear Him speak into our life. Our eyes should be seeking to see His handiwork.

In all things, at all times, in all words, and in all action our lives should serve, honor, worship, glorify, follow, obey, trust in and rely on Jesus Christ. Keep Him first. Choose to walk each moment of every day with Him for these purposes because He is worthy of all honor, glory, and praise.