Are We Bearing Consequences We Could Have Avoided If We Had Sought God First?
Have you ever considered the consequences of seemingly inconsequential decisions to just act as most do on something versus stopping to ask God first?
Maybe your decision or solution is simply that of what generations of people have always done in that situation–like going to the doctor when you’re sick… maybe it just seems logical & reasonable like seeking an ally in battle… maybe it doesn’t seem any serious offense like pride, arrogance, or rebellion against God.
That’s how it typically goes for me anyway. I don’t think of it as being prideful or distrusting of God–I’m just acting on what I know to do from past experiences or the advice of those before me.
I don’t think of it as pride to go to the doctor when I am sick. I don’t think of it as turning my back on God when I ask for a friend’s help in crisis. It’s just what what one typically does in those situations.
My Hope Is in the LORD! … Do I Act Like It?
But then this little verse in 2 Chronicles 16 just has to throw a wrench into everything I believe to be reasonable.
“Because you have relied on the king of Syria, & have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand.” (2 Chronicles 16:7)
Now. I don’t believe God’s intent with this statement was to throw a temper tantrum of rage, but rather to say, “I could have helped you, but you didn’t even ask me… you went somewhere else for help instead, & because of that decision, you won’t get the help you so desperately sought from other sources.”
God is our hope. Not just our SOURCE of hope… He IS our hope.
He wants us to come to Him as our solution, as our top priority, as our first inclination right off the start.
He knows He can help us & He wants us to know it & seek Him for it as well.
Accepting Sin or Accepting God’s Help for Change?
This also rings true in regard to our sinful habits, ones we think are “just who we are.” Sure, if we act on that assumption (that it’s “just the way we are”), rather than trusting God’s way as best & Him as our help, we won’t find anything else to be true, as we rot from the inside out because of our sin patterns that He passionately wants to help free us from.
But, if we stop to think that although, from our very core, we feel our gut instinct inescapably true, that maybe just maybe the God who created the universe might just MIGHT know better & we stop to ask for HIS way & will & help knowing HOW…. We’ll find the solution we seek in Him.
He Needs to be My First Go-To
God alone knows everything & God alone knows every solution, so why is my gut instinct not to go to God first for everything?
Before I search online for answers.
Before I ask a friend for their thoughts.
Before I ask my parents for advice.
Before I go to a doctor or any professional for help.
Before anything, my first instinct ought to be to seek God’s help, wisdom, & direction.
God Knows What I Cannot See
Maybe He knows I will be ripped off by the person I am inclined to seek help from… maybe they won’t have the skill needed to detect &/or prevent an impending health concern… maybe they are just best-guessing based on previous evidences…?
But God? He only does for my good. He knows exactly who I need to go to. He doesn’t have to guess. EVER.
So why is He not my first go-to for help?
How many times has my life been negatively affected because I did exactly what King Asa of Judah did in 2 Chronicles 16 in going to someone or something else before or instead of going to God?
WAIT on the LORD
Those verses to “wait on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14)… to acknowledge Him [as GOD] in all I do (Proverbs 3:5-6)… to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17)… to be still & know that He is God (Psalm 46:10)…
They all beckon me to not just pray as an extra measure or as a last resort, but to sit in prayer, to sit in it & wait on Him, knowing I can go elsewhere, but with HIM, I can be certain… that I ought to wait on Him.
I think a big reason I do everything else before consulting Him is the wait. I see a need & think it must be solved now. My gut instinct is not to see a need & WAIT, even knowing a wait for God is more effective than a quick maybe solution.
God has perfect timing & even His wait is because He knows the circumstances that need to line up just so & that rushing it will not allow for that.
Maybe He guides to go to the hospital, but He doesn’t tell you right away because the doctor who will know & see the real cause/need isn’t working the day you ask God for help & God waits so you see the right doctor… we don’t know.
But we can know that HE knows. And He alone KNOWS—even the TIMING... Even when the wait is frustrating &/or scary.
Trust Him in the wait.
Shame on Me
Shame on me for thinking any other person, even a professional, could trump an all-knowing, all-wise, all-powerful GOD ALMIGHTY.
Shame on me for just jumping to fix it myself as if He doesn’t know better & have perfect timing in all He does.
Shame on me for making myself higher than Him in my heart, as the authority in those decisions–even those decisions not to wait.
My Prayer
“God, I know You get it. You know I am so limited in understanding just how powerful & great You are. I know You are patient & long-suffering. But please forgive me for thinking I might be able to fix it sooner/better than You-for making You lower than You are. I’m sorry for making myself god over seeking You first. Please forgive my pride & foolishness. Please forgive me & help prompt my heart when I am doing it so I remember, ‘oh yeah, pray first.. let GOD.’ Help me change my patterns to stop & consult You before anyone else. Help me recognize that You offer Your wisdom to those who ask & keep asking (not asking a lot to “activate” it, but asking a lot as in a determination to KEEP trusting You even when it doesn’t happen when I think it should). You alone are God. You alone know. Please forgive me & help me grow in awareness & humility… & help me change this bad & prideful habit. In Jesus’ loving & powerful name, Amen.”
“Because You Sought ______ Versus Me….”
Is God your go-to? Is He the One you instantly think to go to first?
Is He the first One you trust to have the answer? Even in timing that isn’t your own? –the ONLY One you trust to have the perfect, RIGHT answer? Even above professionals?
Or is He supplemental or a last resort?
How do you treat the need for the help of God? Is it an “ABSOLUTELY” or a “sometimes”?
Take a moment to take stock of those times & lay them before Him in humble repentance, asking for His forgiveness that He is always so quick to give. And ask for His help to humbly do better at seeking Him first in ALL things.
Remember King Asa & Seek the LORD
Remember 2 Chronicles 16 next time you are faced with an opportunity to see a doctor or seek help in some other way. Will you seek your hope in Him? Or will you pay the consequences of missing out on His wisdom, direction, & aid as told in 2 Chronicles 16?
Will you choose to trust Him, or will it be said, “Because you sought ________________, versus Me…”?
Shine HOPE by making Him your first choice & your first instinctive go-to when you need anything in life, big or small. Because He alone KNOWS.
Coming Next Week
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