HIGHLIGHT
2 Chronicles 14:1 (ESV): 1 Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days the land had rest for ten years.
2 Chronicles 15:19 (ESV): 19 And there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
EXPLAIN
The beginning of my reading for today which begins the recounting of Asa’s reign notes that God gave him peace.
At one point during Asa’s reign, Zerah the Ethiopian attacked him with a million man army and 300 chariots, but Asa depended on God and God gave Judah a glorious victory.
My reading ends with the statement that there was no more war until Asa’s 35th year. The next chapter details a disastrous decision by the king.
When Judah was threatened Israel, Asa made a covenant with Syria. Israel had to withdraw and Asa gained victory, but at the expense of God’s blessing.
God chastened Asa because he trusted in man’s help instead of seeking God’s help. The rest of Asa’s life and reign was lived without seeking God’s help.
APPLY
The two chapters I read today seem to anticipate the disastrous decision of Asa in tomorrow’s reading. Asa prospered and served God wholeheartedly… for a while… before the war drums sounded again. But then his fears overcame his faith.
The question for us is… do we have a faith that will remain true when the “war drums” sound in our lives? We may be serving God well now while everything seems to be going “okay”, but how will we respond when all that we have worked and struggled for is threatened?
RESPOND
Heavenly Father, strengthen my faith. Help me to live faithfully for you in times of ease and times of distress. May I honor your name by my response to trouble. Amen.