That's A Wrap

2 Chronicles 16:7–9 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Syria, and did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Syria has escaped you. Were not the Ethiopians and the Libyans a huge army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the Lord, he gave them into your hand. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

That’s a wrap… 2017 is in the books; there’s nothing that we can do to change the events in the year 2017. No doubt as we all look back over the year there are some things that we are proud of; and there are some things that we are ashamed of. There are some areas that we seized the opportunity, and there are others that we squandered the privileges the Lord placed in front of us. There are ways we excelled as a spouse, parent, friend, etc. and there are ways that we failed. My hope for my life is that I am growing; I hope that I was more like Christ in 2017 than I was in 2016, and my hope is that this growth continues into the year 2018. Growth does not come naturally, we do not wake up one morning and realize that we have matured in our Christ-likeness; rather it is a choice and a struggle of daily dying to self.

What’s it going to take to have more victories in 2018 than we had in 2017; I believe one of the first things we are going to have to do is to rely upon God.

You will notice in the text above that Asa the King of Judah relied upon the king of Syria, and not on God (v.7). Therefore, Judah lost the battle with Syria; and because of their lack of faith they will now suffer many hardships through various wars (v.9).

It’s easy in life to become self-reliant. Our money, jobs, bank accounts, positions, education, and relationships can make us disillusioned and give us a false sense of security. Notice verse 9 “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.” God will not accept those who reject his sovereignty and lean on themselves; however God is looking aggressively to support those who are wholeheartedly committed to him.

Let it be true of our lives that God can find our heart’s blameless toward Him. May it be true that no matter how many bank accounts, possessions, or positions we hold; we will always know that we are dependent upon God and that every good and perfect gift is from him.