Faith-fueled little prayers to a faithful big God (Isaiah 37:14)
There are hardly any decent kings in the Old Testament – certainly not many who are worthy of praise and imitating. Surely a reminder for us to set our hope on the one true King. And yet, from the broken kings of Israel there are some limited pictures of right responses to God. For instance, in Isaiah 37 with king Hezekiah, there is an image that has been good for my own heart and life following King Jesus.
The setting:
Mighty Assyria has destroyed many cities in Judah, and is now surrounding Jerusalem. The royal spokesman for Assyria, addresses the people of Jerusalem. He reminds them of all the people and ‘gods’ of those people that Assyria has already conquered. And then he tells them they are foolish if they think their Lord will rescue them (Isaiah 36:18). Now, under God’s sovereignty, events cause Assyria to momentarily withdraw from destroying Jerusalem. But the Assyria spokesman sends his version of ‘We’ll be back soon!!’ to Hezekiah repeating his warning.
The response:
Here is the image that has been good for my heart. In Isaiah 37:14 we’re told:
"Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers’ hands, read it, then went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it before the LORD. Then Hezekiah prayed to the LORD…"
And he prays saying:
"LORD of Armies, God of Israel… you are God – you alone – of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth."
He brings before him all the words that Assyria has sent to ‘mock the living God’, and then ends his request with these words:
"Now, LORD our God, save us from his power SO THAT all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, LORD, are God – you alone."
For us:
We can complicate things, especially as those following Jesus. But the fact of the matter is that we come to God for salvation only by faith – trusting in him and his promises secure in Jesus. And actually, as we start, so we continue – in other words, by faith. And one of the surest signs of a simple and yet deep trust in the living God is shown in our prayer. And in particular, in our coming before him in ALL things – big and small.
—> Have you been hiding things from God? (Although, can you hide from the one who sees and knows all things?).
—> Have you been carrying fears and burdens alone, without ‘spreading them before the LORD?’ That is a marker of pride. And it is a slap in the face of the One who cares for you.
1 Peter 5:6-7 says:
"Humble yourselves therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your cares on him, because he cares about you."
Little children like me, let us bring our fears and concerns and struggles with sin before our God and Father in the strong name of Jesus. Let us ‘spread them before the Lord’. This is right and good and pleasing to the One who knows and loves us. Let us do it in the big crisis moments. And let us do it in the small everyday concerns that come along.
Prayer: Oh Father, by your Spirit and in the name of Jesus, help us to be quick to prayerfully lay things before you. As a first response – the response of trust in You.
Grace and peace
Ryan, Howard Campus Director
