Thought of the Day !!

   Then the commander [of the Assyrian army] stood and called out in Hebrew: "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria! This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you.  He cannot deliver you from my hand.  Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the LORD when he says, 'The LORD will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.'"
                                                                  2 Kings 18:28-30 (NIV)

This might seem like a strange passage of scripture to study.  It comes after Assyria has conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel and taken the inhabitants off as slaves to Assyria.  It is the word of a pagan king's emissary that is trying to convince the people of Judah to give up on their king Hezekiah, and even more importantly, on their God.  It's a voice coming to God's people saying, "your God is not sufficient".

Do we not continuously hear these same voices today?  Are there not people in our own lives who try to convince us that if we want to be safe that we must lock our selves up and not go around certain people.  Surely our God is not sufficient to protect us.  Are there not voices that tell us that if we don't work harder and longer hours to prove to our bosses that we are worthy of bonuses, raises and promotions that we cannot provide the extra things that will make our families happy?  Surely our God is not sufficient to bring us joy.  Are there not voices that tell us that if we give our possessions away to those who don't have that we ourselves will be without?  Surely our God is not sufficient to provide.

This is what happened to the people of Judah during Hezekiah's day.  They were protected from the Assyrian army.  One night the angel of the LORD killed 185,000 men in their sleep.  The next, day those who remained, got up and went back to Assyria.  God had protected Hezekiah and his people. 

If our God is sufficient to protect King Hezekiah and the people of Judah from a much stronger army, is He not sufficient to protect us, provide for us, bring joy?  Is He not sufficient to care for the needs of those He calls His children?

Call out to the Lord today and seek His ways.  Like a good Father, He will provide, He will guide, and He will care. 

In the love of Christ,
greg