What Do You Do?
What do you do when the unexpected hits? When the phone rings and it’s a message you weren’t prepared for? When your plans for a great day get derailed with no chance to get back on track? When the car won’t crank and you’re going to be late for a big meeting?
I’m sure if you’re like me, you’ve encountered some unexpected moments in your life. Things happen. I’m not always such a trooper through those unexpected waters.
What about you?
I imagine we share some similarities about the unexpected. We don’t plan to be sick. We don’t plan for the babysitter to cancel at the last minute. We don’t plan to go into work only to be told they are downsizing and have cut the position you’ve been working hard in for years. Sometimes we are not prepared for death.
I find comfort in reading back through the stories of the Bible. Though I may not understand everything on the first or second read-through, I find comfort in knowing God designed it all and made it all flow together perfectly.
Recently, I have spent some time in the books of First and Second Chronicles, in the Old Testament. In the middle of the story, my heart realized just who had me. That “who,” is God.
Let me give you a brief rundown of what’s going on in the story. The book of Second Chronicles is centered around the reminder that God is a God who fulfills His promises. A God who sees and is near to His people. Solomon and his people worked to build a temple in which the people could worship God. Solomon comes to realize that God Himself, cannot be contained inside the temple. During this time, there were many different leaders and not-so-easy days with I’m sure confusion and chaos. Sounds like the times we are living in today, doesn’t it?
After fumbling my way through the back and forth, I reached a prayer from Solomon in which he prayed for the people of Israel to come to God, no matter what was going on. They were in the middle of a battle. Likely not the way they had planned and they needed help that only God can provide. Check out the verses below.
2 Chronicles 20:6-22 New International Version (emphasis mine)
6“Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. 7 Our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? 8 They have lived in it and have built-in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 9 ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’
10 “But now here are men from Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. 11 See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. 12 Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”
13 All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord.
14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.
15 He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. 17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the Lord. 19 Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.
20 Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” 21 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise Him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:
“Give thanks to the Lord,
for his love endures forever.”
22 As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated.
I want to point out a few things that stood out to me.
Solomon admitted weakness. You can see in verse 12 that he admitted to God - “We do not know what to do.” Our prayers don’t have to be fancy. We don’t have to “know” what to say. We just need to be willing to talk to God. All He wants is for us to come to Him.
“The battle is not yours, but God’s.” We read this in verse 15 and we are told again in verse 17 that the Lord will be with you. A reminder still true today, that no matter what we may face, God is bigger and has it under control. God will fight for us.
Live with a heart of worship. Verses 21-22 show the praise the people gave to the Lord. I had written in my Bible this - “Worship is a way to defy the darkness and overcome the midnight hour.” Worship shifts the focus from my problems or circumstances to God’s goodness and faithfulness available to all of us every day.
Worship was their weapon when times got tough. Solomon called on God at all times, not just when things were good, but also when waves of unexpected waters crashed on the shore. I’m not sure what you’re facing today. Whatever it is, know that God hears our prayers, God sees our struggles, and God fights for us in the battles of life.
