From: July 2, 2024
“Turn back, and say to Hezekiah the leader of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you” (2 Kings 20:5 ESV).
Hezekiah, king of Judah, was sick to the point of death. The prophet Isaiah came to see him and told him to put his house in order for the Lord had said he would die. Hearing this, Hezekiah cried out to the Lord in prayer. And the Lord heard his prayer, telling Isaiah to turn back to tell Hezekiah that the Lord would heal him.
Notice some of the details of the Lord’s response. First, God said that he “heard” Hezekiah’s prayer. We can be assured of this. God’s hears our prayers. Second, God saw his tears. The Lord is moved to compassion by our tears.
God hears. God sees. And finally, God heals. The Lord is able to save and to heal. He calls us to take hold of such things by faith through prayer. As we read in the epistle of James, “Pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16).
PRAYER: Dear Father, we often forget to pray. We let worry and doubt overwhelm us. Forgive us. We bring all our cares and desires to You this day. Remember us. Hear our prayers. See our tears. Stretch forth Your hand to heal and to save. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: July 2, 2023
“The rest of the events in Hezekiah’s reign, including the extent of his power and how he built a pool and dug a tunnel to bring water into the city, are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah” (2 Kings 20:20 NLT).
King Hezekiah was one of the greatest kings in Judah. In 2 Kings 18:5, he was described as one who “trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.” The only foolish event attributed to his reign happened near its end, as he invited emissaries from Babylon to see all of the wealth within Jerusalem, thus foreshadowing Babylon’s future overthrow of the city. Yet, despite this prideful lapse in judgment, Hezekiah remains one of the greatest kings to sit on David’s throne.
Evidence of his reign still remains today. For the waters of the Gihon Spring still gush up and travel through the 1,750 feet of manmade tunnel to the pool of Siloam inside Jerusalem’s walls. The tool marks in the tunnel’s walls still show the human effort that went into Hezekiah’s Tunnel, which he had built to help the city survive a siege.
Some years ago, my wife and I waded through this manmade tunnel. Its existence attests to ancient man’s genius and to the credibility of the Bible which describes it. For the Bible describes real people and real events that took place in real places.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we trust Your Word for You have preserved it for our benefit. Even when men question it, the rocks cry out to attest to its accuracy. Thank You Father for the Word of God. And even more, thank You for the Living Word, Your Son, Jesus. For it’s in His name that we pray, amen.
From: July 2, 2022
PAUL GIVES A DETAILED ACCOUNT
This was a wonderful day in the history of the early church. Paul returned from his third and longest missionary journey to give “a detailed account” to James and the elders in Jerusalem. After hearing the report of how the Gentiles all over Asia Minor and Greece had received the gospel, the elders rejoiced and praised God.
The modern practice of giving a missions report back to the home church is really not modern at all. I suppose the first missions team to report back was the “Seventy-two” sent out by Jesus who “returned with joy” (Luke 10:17). Yet, Paul and his team certainly solidified the practice of bringing back a detailed report to the sending church.
For the last couple of years we haven’t sent out short-term mission teams due to COVID travel restrictions. But we have many long-term partners living internationally from whom we love to receive prayer and praise reports. And we hope to be sending out short-term teams again in the near future.
I wonder. Will the Lord expect a report from us from our time here on earth? Certainly He will. For the Scripture says, “Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God” (Rom. 14:12).
PRAYER: Dear Father, our time here seems increasingly fleeting. One day soon we will stand before Your Son to give an account. Strengthen us to be faithful to Him in all things. For we long to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: July 2, 2016
King Hezekiah was one of the greatest kings in Judah. In 2 Kings 18:5, he was described as one who “trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.” The only foolish event attributed to his reign happened near its end, as he invited emissaries from Babylon to see all of the wealth within Jerusalem, thus foreshadowing Babylon’s future overthrow of the city. Yet, despite this prideful lapse in judgment, Hezekiah remains one of the greatest kings to sit on David’s throne. Evidence of his reign still remains today, as the water still flows through Hezekiah’s tunnel into Jerusalem. My wife, Robin and I have waded through this manmade tunnel which attests to ancient man’s genius and to the credibility of the Bible which describes its existence.
From: July 2, 2015
King Hezekiah was one of the greatest kings in Judah. In 2 Kings 18:5, he was described as one who “trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.” The only foolish event attributed to his reign happened near its end, as he invited emissaries from Babylon to see all of the wealth within Jerusalem, thus foreshadowing Babylon’s future overthrow of the city. Yet, despite this prideful lapse in judgment, Hezekiah remains one of the greatest kings to sit on David’s throne. Evidence of his reign still remains today, as the water still flows through Hezekiah’s tunnel into Jerusalem. My wife, Robin and I have waded through this manmade tunnel which attests to ancient man’s genius and to the credibility of the Bible which describes its existence.
From: July 2, 2014
As a father and grandfather, some special urge emerges within me when one of my children use the name “Daddy” or “Pawpaw.” When my grandson, Nate says, “Pawpaw, can you play Power Rangers with me?” It’s the name he calls me that moves me more than his request. I have no interest in being the red, blue or yellow Power Ranger, but I am moved to be Nate’s “Pawpaw.” Yet, not everyone can use my name in this way. Only my children and grandchildren have this right and influence with me. Perhaps this is a small insight into how God responds when we invoke His Name. We are His children and when we call upon His Name, He responds. As Jesus said, “If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:14).