Monday Reflection \u2013 March 08, 2021
Crying out to God<\/p>\n\n\n
Asa cried to the\u00a0Lord\u00a0his God, \u201cHelp us, O Lord\u00a0our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O\u00a0Lord, you are our God; let no mortal prevail against you.\u201d 2 Chronicles 14:11<\/p>\n\n\n
Asa, the great-grandson of Solomon, took the throne of Judah at the end of Jeroboam\u2019s reign in Israel. The Bible notes that he did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord. Asa started out by launching a reform movement that lashed out against idolatry, and such reforms were very thorough. While he could not force the people of Judah to seek the Lord and obey him, Asa commanded them with moral force and with his own example. He removed the high places that were dedicated to idols, but not the ones that were dedicated to Yahweh. It is no wonder that the King and his kingdom enjoyed peace and quietness and the Lord gave Asa rest, at least at the start.<\/p>\n\n\n
Interestingly, even though the people enjoyed peace, Asa built fortified cities in Judah. Though he had no war, yet he provided for it. He emphasized strengthening the nation\u2019s defense. Asa likely discerned that before long the enemies of Judah would come for battle. Well, the Ethiopians were first in line. They came out with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots. The army of Judah had only 580,000 men. Trouble loomed as the Ethiopian army obviously posed a great threat to the kingdom of Judah, especially since it was almost twice as large.<\/p>\n\n\n
What would the Commander-in-Chief do? Well, Asa clearly decided that he would not back down, for he led his army out in battle against his enemy. But then, we encounter today\u2019s Watchword – He cried out to the Lord. In his prayer Asa correctly understood that God\u2019s power was not enhanced or limited by man\u2019s apparent strength or weakness. He affirmed that their trust was in God. He declared that they were entering this battle in God\u2019s name. He recognized that this battle belonged to the Lord and called upon God to defend His honour – do not let man prevail against you! With God\u2019s integrity, name and power at stake, God answered powerfully by fighting the battle and striking the Ethiopians.<\/p>\n\n\n
Admittedly, Asa did the wisest thing that he could by crying out to God. We learn that whenever we are faced with insurmountable odds, it is wise to pray. When it seems hopeless to go on, it is wise to pray. When we lack strength for the battle, we can cry out to God. We remind ourselves that the mightiest army of man is nothing against Almighty God; the word difficult is not in God’s vocabulary. One of the challenges we face is that we fail to rest on and trust fully in God. We are prone to pray and worry, or we pray and try to work it out. How beautiful it is to rest on God! We also affirm that when we go in God\u2019s name, He fights on our behalf and secures the victory.<\/p>\n\n\n
Jermaine Gibson\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Monday Reflection \u2013 March 08, 2021 Crying out to God Asa cried to the\u00a0Lord\u00a0his God, \u201cHelp us, O Lord\u00a0our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O\u00a0Lord, you are our God; let no mortal\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"template":"","watchword_topic":[11],"class_list":["post-475","watchword","type-watchword","status-publish","hentry","watchword_topic-prayer"],"yoast_head":"\n