King Hezekiah's Letter

One of my favorite characters in the Old Testament is King Hezekiah of Judah. He always interested me, but his story really came to life after reading Lynn Austin's "Chronicles of the Kings" book series. He is one of those characters that did his best to live the right way his whole life. The Bible shares with us his mistakes and his victories and paints the picture of a good, down-to-earth type man who was just trying to do the right thing. He struggled with his pride, but then, doesn't everyone?

My favorite part of his story is found in 2 Kings 18 and 19. In this passage, we see the king of Assyria come up and take over Judah's sister country, Israel. Feeling heady after his victory, the king of Assyria sends a man named Rabshekah to Judah's capital, Jerusalem, with a message for the country. He said, "Pay tribute or be destroyed." Unfortunately for him, though, he decided that just attacking the King of Judah with his words wasn't enough. He took it a step further and said, "Your God told me to come destroy you. Don't count on Him to save you from me. None of the other gods have been able to stop us from destroying their countries. Even the Israelites' gods didn't give them the victory. Who does your God think He is to be able to do what no other gods have done?"

When the Assyrian message reached King Hezekiah, he did what any normal tiny country being bullied by a larger country would do. He became afraid. He rent his clothes, covered himself with burlap and went to the House of the Lord. He sent his messengers to give the news to Prophet Isaiah and ask him to seek the counsel of God. God answered Hezekiah.

"Do not be afraid of the words the King of Assyria spoke. I'm going to send a rumor that will send him and his army away from you. When he goes, he's going to be killed and never bother you again."

Sure enough, it happened just as the Lord said. Rabshekah heard that his king was battling against the Egyptians and took his army over to help. Before he left, though, he wrote a letter to King Hezekiah. He reiterated his former threats and challenges against God. He knew enough to know that King Hezekiah's God was invisible, so he battle Hezekiah's faith in the invisible with a visible reminder of a problem. He hoped to shake Hezekiah's faith so bad that he would break down and deny the power of God.

His plan, however, backfired badly. 

King Hezekiah's reaction was far from pulling his hair out, having a nervous breakdown, and quitting. Instead, he did something that will always fascinate me. He took the visible reminder, the letter, and took it to the altar of his invisible God. He laid it out on that altar and started praying.

"God, you made all the kingdoms of eath. You made Heaven and earth. Listen to my prayer with your ears. See the problem with your eyes. This man hasn't attacked me; he has attacked you. The Assyrians have destroyed many people and nations. They have cast many gods into the fire, but you and I both know that those were not real gods. They were no-gods, just works of stone and wood and of no consequence. That's how they could destroy them so easily. But I know my God. My God created the materials of which those no-gods were made. My God has the power to save us from the Assyrians. So, show up! Save us and show them and every other country that YOU are the only true God!"

In essence, he laid that letter before God and said, "What are you going to do about this?"

The Bible doesn't tell us how long he waited for God to answer, but something tells me that it wasn't very long. Isaiah sent a message to Hezekiah that said, "God has heard your prayers. He says, 'I am going to absolutely decimate the king of Assyria. It will be so bad that the young girls of Jerusalem are going to joke and laugh at him. Who do you think you are, human king, to reproach and blaspheme ME? I am bringing a multitude of my chariots against you. I know where you live. I know when you wake up in the morning and when you go to bed at night, and I can see everything you do in between. I hear your voice raging at me and challenging me, and no, I'm not just going to let that go. I'm going to put my hook in your nose and my bridle in your lips. I'm going to remind you that I am the Creator, and you are just the created. Your pride fills my nostrils with a stomach-turning stench, and I'm going to make sure the whole earth knows how I feel about what you have done.

"I'm not going to let a single Assyrian arrow strike Jerusalem. He's not going to penetrate the wall or make it close enough to need a shield for your arrows. He's going to leave the way that he came."

2 Kings 19:35: "And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses."

1 angel of God. 185,000 dead Assyrians. 

And in the next two verses, the King of Assyria is killed by his own sons. God answered...suddenly.

Now, put a pin in that story and walk with me for a moment.

When we are baptized, we put on Jesus Christ. When we are filled with the Holy Ghost, we have Jesus living inside of us. This means that your life becomes Jesus' life. He lives inside of you. This is why Christians say they are the "Hands and Feet" of Jesus. He is alive inside of me, therefore, my life is not my own. It is His.

If this is His life, not mine, then these are His problems, not mine. They are not my problems because it is not my life.

Now that we understand that, let's go back to the story of King Hezekiah. Because these are His probelms, I can, like King Hezekiah, turn to God and boldy ask, "What are you going to do about this?"

"For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us. In God, we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever." (Psalm 44:6-8)

In prayer, I lay that letter out on the altar. I say, "Lord, this is what I am facing. I am living for you and serving you. I know that you are living inside of me and that makes these problems Your problems. I am leaving these in your presence. I am not taking them with me. I am not carrying them on my shoulders anymore. What are you going to do about this?"

Jesus told us to do this when He said, "Cast your burdens on me, for I care for you." (1 Peter 5:7, Psalm 55:22) He allows us to do this for many reasons, but these are the 4 that He impressed upon me while I was praying today:

Reason 1: It shows surrender. It reminds you that you are not in control, but He is. It takes away the pressure of trying to be in control. It shows your faith in Him.

Reason 2: It frees you to worship and it battles depression.

"Why art though cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God." 

When you cast those cares upon Him and leave that letter on the altar, you free yourself to lift your hands and worship. You cannot be consumed by a problem that you have given to someone else. Your faith battles the depression and you are freed.

Reason 3: It frees you from fear. Along with the depression, fear is removed. You are no longer bound to fear. You are not going to make rash decisions based on your fear because it is no longer your decision to make.

Reason 4: It frees God to work in His way and His timing. God will not share authority, and when you constantly hold onto control of your problem or situation, you push God out. Open your hand and THROW (cast) it to Jesus. Allow Him to have the complete authority and answer the way that He wants to. Hezekiah may have been expecting God to say, "Go out and fight. I will give you the victory." But instead, God answered in an even greater way. His 1 angel was all it took to bring a mighty victory because Hezekiah allowed God to work in His way!

Finally, it may not be "That night" like it was for Hezekiah. While we are waiting for God to SUDDENLY answer, we must keep our faith. We must not let ourselves take control of those problems again. We must leave them in His hands and remember who He is.

"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know WHOM I have believed, and am persuaded that HE is able to keep that which I have committed unto HIM against that day."

If you have committed something to Him, He will not fail you. He cares for you!

Over My Head

If you have ever been in water with young children, you are probably familiar with the incredible terror that they experience when the water approaches their head. I will never forget teaching my siblings how to swim. My baby brother would get in the water by himself with his floaties, but if I took them off of him, he would only cling to me in the water. He had to learn to trust that he was going to be fine, even if the water went over his head.

One of the most terrifying experiences of my life was the time my baby sister jumped into the water, forgetting she had just taken her float vest off. I will never forget the desperation and fear in her eyes as she silently pleaded with me to save her. I have never jumped in after someone so fast. She was shaking with fear when I pulled her out of the water, and the tears were sudden.

I have always been comfortable in water, but I still don't like to be in over my head very often. I like to be able to swim beneath the surface if I want to, but then be able to put my feet on the ground and know that I can still stand in the water. I like to feel safe.

Sometimes, if we aren't careful, we are that way with God. The prophet Ezekiel talked about the river that flowed out of the House of God. He described the progression of the depth of the water. It advanced from his ankles to his knees, to his waist, and finally, so deep that he could not pass over: waters to swim in. (Ez. 47:1-5) When God begins a work in your life, He starts at the ankle level. For someone who has never even been in water, getting in to the ankle-depth takes great faith. It takes trusting in God.

When we master that level, God calls us deeper. We walk in to where the water crests our knees, then our waist, then our shoulders, and finally we stand right on the edge of the scariest part of all: Waters over our head.

There is no control anymore. You've lost the ground beneath your feet. You have to trust that He has His hand beneath you, even though you can't feel it. The waters slip over your head, and its overwhelming. You have to make yourself breathe because you are too strained to do it naturally.

In other words: Your hours get cut at work and you stay faithful in your giving. The water slips over your head. You face depression in faith and determine not to let it beat you this time. The water slips over your head. You take a step of faith and go talk to your pastor about the addiction you are fighting. The water slips over your head. You reach a place in prayer where you no longer care about your needs; you are too filled with a desire to see God save the city that you are called to. The water slips over your head. You stop fighting the calling that God has placed on your life and begin to pursue the ministry God has for you. The water slips over your head.

I have learned in the last few years of serving God that I hardly ever feel in control. In fact, if I am seeking to feel in control, I am probably not seeking the will of God. God's will is for me to serve Him, no matter what I face.

"Whether I sink, whether I swim, it makes no difference when I am beautifully in over my head."

That terror that children face is something I have been feeling myself lately. I've been turning desperate, silent eyes to God, pleading with Him to help me. I know He stands with me, though, because every once in a while there will be a gentle lift. When I think I can't take another day, His hand comes beneath my feet for a moment, and I can breathe again. My trust in Him grows day by day. Just as my baby brother had to learn to trust himself, I have to learn to trust in my Maker and the Holder of my every moment.

"Would you come and tear down the boxes that I have tried to put you in? Let love come teach me who you are again?"

Sometimes I have to just tell myself, "You trust Him, Ariqua. You are in His hands." I know that even when I have lost control, I am free. Even when the water goes over my head, I am right where He wants me to be.