"For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.” 2 Chronicles 16:9
The great promise of this verse is set up against the backdrop of a sobering story of trust. The focus is a king named Asa, ruler of Judah. He is remembered as a good king who sought to follow the ways of Yahweh, or at least until late in his life. It seems the king of Israel, the northern kingdom, opposed him and set up a type of blockade around Jerusalem. Desperate for a solution to the standoff, Asa hired the king of Syria to defeat the king of Israel. The problem was, Asa in reality had hired a worse enemy than he initially faced. The bright promise of 2 Chronicles 16:9 was a reminder that Asa should have trusted in Yahweh rather than a powerful king and army he chose to hire.
The great takeaway for us is the question, "In whom and what do I trust?" Sure; it's easy enough to say I trust in God through Christ, but the reality is that it might be trust plus - trust in God plus trust in my wealth, or trust in God plus trust in my own understanding. There are two key verses that challenge us to wholehearted trust in God:
"Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy." 1 Timothy 6:17
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5
Certainly there is nothing inherently wrong with wealth or understanding. Hopefully we each have some of both! At issue here is what we UTILIZE versus what we TRUST. When we come to wholeheartedly trust in God, we can count on His strong support, as the verse says.
Honestly determining who and what we trust in is certainly not easy. Perhaps King Asa thought he trusted in God - and perhaps he truly had in the past. But, in the moment of crisis, the real issue of trust became apparent.
The challenge before us this morning is this searching question to ask of our Father: "Father, do I wholeheartedly trust in You, or in other things and people?" In a moment of quietness, as we ask this question, we can anticipate His answer and guidance.
What a joy to experience His strong support as we wholeheartedly trust Him!
©Steve Taylor, 2022 --Used by permission
Be sure to also visit http://thetruthrevolution.wordpress.com/ & https://kingdomdreamer.blogspot.com/
Amazon ebook & print devotional -http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FQ1Q9GW
paperback print copy of book — https://www.createspace.com/4500045