Allison: Happiness :)!! As I sit
down to write this (oops, long-overdue) blog, Elizabeth is on campus at
TLU!! Needless to say, I’ve been looking
forward to her visit for a while :). I’m
super excited to get to hang out with her, even if it’s only for a short time. I’ve come to realize just how much I take for
granted the friends I can call up and go to dinner with on a whim. Granted, some of my best friends live in
other cities, so I knew exactly how it would be once we were no longer at
school together. But regardless, I love
that I get to see her again.
So onto 2 Chronicles, which we will be finishing up this
week. As I was reading through the book,
this verse from chapter 19 caught my eye.
“Always think carefully before pronouncing judgment. Remember that you do not judge to please
people but to please the Lord. He will
be with you when you render the verdict in each case. Fear the Lord and judge with integrity, for
the Lord our God does not tolerate perverted justice, partiality, or the taking
of bribes.”---2 Chronicles 19:6-7
So in these verses, King Jehoshaphat (awesome name!) is
appointing judges for Judah. He is
basically creating this structure of authority that all ties back to the high
priest. So he appoints these judges, and
they are sent out to keep order in the land.
But I love the instructions he gives to them. Try this with me: take whatever you are—whether
it’s your role in your family, your occupation, a leadership position—and think
about what Jehoshaphat would say to you regarding that role. He lays out four main points for their
positions:
--Think carefully before you act
--Remember that you do whatever it is you do for the Lord
--Know that God is with you in every action you take
--Do whatever it is you do with integrity
What wise advice! Isn’t
it amazing that words spoken thousands of years ago can still ring truer than
ever today?! Technology changes, job
titles change, but people do not. And
while it may be simple or obvious, I know these are things I often forget. And how much more focused would our efforts be if we did keep these in mind? Sure if you’re leading a bible study perhaps
it’s pretty easy to see how these guidelines apply. But what about as a teacher? A doctor?
A financial analyst? A friend? A student?
This week I challenge you to consider how Jehoshaphat’s
words of wisdom can ring true in your own life.
And even consider how the words spoken by kings and prophets and martyrs—all
inspired by the same God—can drive right at the heart of our own struggles and
decisions today. Crazy cool isn’t
it?! Ya’ll have a great weekend!!
Elizabeth: “If my people, who are called by name,
will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked
ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal
their land.” ~1 Chronicles 7:14
Ahah! I found some
gospel in the Old Testament! Here, God is speaking to Solomon. God says that He
is on Solomon’s side, on His people’s side. He says that His people will hear
from Him, that he will forgive their sin and will heal their land. That sounds
like good news to me! But, also notice that those things are prefaced with “if
my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek
my face and turn from their wicked ways,” God wants His people, who he has
claimed and who have claimed Him, to do some action. He speaks the action words
of “pray” and “seek,” and I think that’s important. While God is alive and
present in His children’s lives, both then and now, He wants relationship with
them. What good does it do to acknowledge God and not grow a relationship with
Him? We can’t fully know Him without
spending time in prayer or spending time seeking His ways instead of our own.
I
think the people in Solomon’s time struggled in the same way that the people of
today struggle with knowing God’s ways versus knowing one’s own way. It’s
really easy for me to decide what I want to do and do it without considering
the effects of my decisions and actions. It’s easier for me to go with my plans
than it is to take the time to hear out God’s plans. God says he will forgive
sin and heal the land of His people, if His people will seek Him. He wants to
hear from His children. I’m only going to grow closer to another person if I
engage conversation with the person. I can’t expect a relationship to take off
out of just seeing someone. The same works for God, while He will always be
present in our lives, He desires a relationship with His children. Seeking that
relationship and furthering that relationship with Him will look different for
each person. I feel like I grow closer to God when I’m engaging in community
and serving those around me. When I’m in conversation about my faith with
friends, family, co-workers, and mentors. When I spend time in worship. When I
have my Bible open and actually reading scripture. When I’m praying alone or in
company. There are all sorts of ways that I am able to connect with God, to
seek His face. I’m not always the best at doing these things all the time. But,
what if I were? What if the world around us was? How would things be different?
I want to challenge you to join me in
finding ways to engage our relationship and build our relationship with God. I
want to spend some intentional time humbling myself and seeking God’s face this
week, will you join me?!
Alphabitz for the week:
Engage Seek Meditate
Sisters in Christ,
Allison & Elizabeth
