When you're faced with an impossible situation, where do you turn?
It's a question today's chapters address in a few ways. Even one guy (King Asa) had different answers at moments--sometimes, he was right and at other moments, he was wrong.
In the first scenario, Asa and his army were surrounded by over a million enemy warriors. They were seriously outnumbered and in a very precarious situation. Asa turned to God for help:
Then Asa prayed to God,
"O God, you aren't impressed by numbers
or intimidated by a show of force
once you decide to help:
Help us, O God;
we have come out to meet this huge army
because we trust
in you and who you are.
Don't let mere mortals stand against you!"
God showed up and helped Asa and his army--He performed a major miracle.
However, at another point in Asa's life when his kingdom was threatened again, Asa first went to another king (Ben-Hadad, king of Aram) and requested an ally in battle. After Asa made this pact, Hanani, a prophet, came to visit. The prophet said to King Asa:
"Because you went for help
to the king of Aram and didn't ask God for help,
you've lost a victory over the army of the king of Aram.
Didn't the Ethiopians and Libyans come against you with superior forces,
completely outclassing you with their chariots and cavalry?
But you asked God for help and he gave you the victory.
God is always on the alert,
constantly on the lookout
for people who are totally committed to him.
You were foolish to go for human help
when you could have had God's help.
Now you're in trouble..."
Wow. How quickly we can forget God's help, miracles and willingness to be an ally working on our behalf. I'll be really clear: Getting help from other people is not a bad thing. We all have moments where we need friends and allies. But shouldn't we first ask God for His help--especially if He's proven Himself to us before?
When we first ask God for help, we're making a statement that He is first in our lives--and that we trust Him to come through. We can still get help from people or by being resourceful ourselves...but even other people and our own intelligence are gifts from God. He's ultimately the source of everything good we know. Trust that.
No comments:
Post a Comment