Coffee With The Lord

Every day we face decisions… some of them seem big, others seem trivial.  As Christians, on some of those decisions we feel the acute need to seek God’s guidance.  On others, we are all too willing to just “wing it” – doing what seems to be expedient and right to us at the moment.  And the sad fact is, that’s when we often get ourselves, as they say, “in a pickle!”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m the first to acknowledge that God expects us to use our heads!  He did not give us brains as an unnecessary cranial accessory.  He, however, expects our minds to be informed by Scriptural principles and to be renewed by His redemptive work and the power of the Holy Spirit.  After all, the writer of Proverbs urged us to, “Trust in the Lord with all our heart, lean not on our own understanding, in all our ways to acknowledge Him and He would direct our steps.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)  Notice he did not say “don’t USE your understanding” – he simply said “don’t LEAN on it.”  In other words we should submit our decision making to Biblical principles and God’s direction and sovereignty.

This morning I read a passage where an otherwise great king of Judah failed on two counts.  The King of Babylon sent important officials to Hezekiah with a flattering letter and gifts after his recovery from a severe illness.  It appealed to Hezekiah’s ego and it disarmed him.  Flattered, in a moment of pride, “he showed them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oils, his armory, and all that was in his storehouses.”

The Lord revealed this serious error in judgment to Isaiah, who confronted Hezekiah.  Isaiah confronted Hezekiah and predicted that this bad decision would result ultimately in the destruction of Jerusalem, the temple, and the exile!  (Read Isaiah 39)

After reading this passage this morning I jotted a note to myself in the margin of my Bible.  Here it is:  “Don’t become inappropriately self-reliant!  Don’t “hunch it” on important decisions!  Seek the Lord’s guidance in all things and the counsel of trusted men or women of God!

Here’s an important verse of Scripture in that regard for us all:  “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you! He will not rebuke you for asking.” (James 1:5 NLT)  He does not say precisely how the wisdom and guidance will come.  It may come through Biblically informed reasoning, the Godly counsel of wise friends, or in answer to sincere prayer… but It will come!  God protect us from simply “winging it” on our own.

I was so impressed this morning in my Bible reading by the power and effectiveness of sincere prayer! How did James put it? “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” (James 5:16 NLT) And besides Elijah (the example given in James) we can add the example of Hezekiah’s sincere, fervent prayer recorded in Isaiah 37:14-20 (read it… It’s simple, it’s fervent, it’s sincere and expressive of authentic faith in a Living God!)

Sennacherib, king of Assyria, had invaded Judah and taken many cities. Jerusalem was next. The Rabshakeh, Sennacherib’s high ranking military leader, sent an arrogant, threatening, letter to Hezekiah, blaspheming the Living God. Hezekiah did all that he knew to do in the crisis, he took the letter up to the temple and spread it out before the Lord and prayed…

And here was the result…

“Then Isaiah, the son of Amos, sent to Hezekiah saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: BECAUSE YOU HAVE PRAYED TO ME concerning Sennacherib, king of Assyria, this is the word that the Lord has spoken concerning him… Whom have you mocked and reviled? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes to the heights? Against the Holy One of Israel! … Have you not heard that I determined it long ago? I planned from days of old what now I bring to pass… I know your sitting down and your going out and coming in, and your raging against Me!’ … Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning the king of Assyria: ‘He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it! By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the Lord. For I will defend this city and save it, for My own sake and for the sake of my servant David! … The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this!” (From Isaiah 37:21-38)

It’s almost as if in response to the intense, sincere, believing prayer of Hezekiah, God spoke through Isaiah, his prophet, and said, “Don’t worry Hezekiah, I’ve got this one!” Read the entire passage… God did exactly what he promised!

Just gotta say… I don’t understand why, when we are facing a crisis, we don’t pray more! After all Jesus said, “When you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Matthew 6:6)