2 Chronicles 34:19 “When the king heard the words of the law, he tore his clothes.”

 GOOD GRIEF

 Every time I hear the expression “Good Grief” I think of Charlie Brown.  I can just hear Lucy saying, “Good Grief, Charlie Brown.”  Okay, I’m telling my age again.  Lol

But here in this passage we see a true expression of good grief by Josiah.  It would be better called “holy” grief. When he heard the words of THE WORD his heart was grieved over his and the nation’s disobedience.  He obviously had never heard these words and was appalled that they had not kept God’s commandments which were so simply spelled out in the Word.

TEACHING MOMENT

 This is a beautiful example of how easy it is to find out what God wants you to do. Your children simply have to read God’s Word to find out how to live their lives.  Without it, they have no clue.  Josiah was trying to do all the right things, but until he heard God’s Word, he didn’t realize all that was commanded.

Now, I am not saying that little Johnny and Susie have to be legalist and spend all their time making sure they are following every command of God.  As Christians we have the Holy Spirit to guide us too.  Josiah didn’t have that.  But we still need to read and study the Word to find out how God would have us live.

How is your study of the Word going?  There are so many truths hidden in the Word of God.  It is kind of like a treasure hunt each day as we turn to it. Ask the Lord each time you pick up the Bible to show you a new truth to live by.  He is faithful to disclose Himself to those who truly seek Him.

O Lord, my God, You are faithful to reveal Your truths in Your Word each time I seek You.  Thank You for leading me in Your path of righteousness.  Help me seek You earnestly each day.

2 Chronicles 28:24b “and he closed the doors of the house of the Lord and made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.” 

 HOUSE OF GOD

 Ahaz was, to put it simply, a very bad king.  Just read 2 Chronicles 28 and you will see.  It’s a wonder God didn’t just strike him dead with a lightning bolt or something.  That’s why I am not God.  Lol.

This verse caught my eye when I read it, “and he closed the doors of the house of the Lord and made altars for himself in every corner of Jerusalem.” He just shut up the temple.  He was done with God, so it seemed.  And he didn’t want the people going either.  That’s bad.

TEACHING MOMENT

 We do the same thing, in a way, when we neglect our church.  Did you know that today someone who attends church just 40% of the time is considered a regular attender?  Now don’t hear me wrong.  I am NOT saying you have to be at church every time the doors are open.  But we allow too many things to get in the way of worship.

Your children need to know that worshipping with fellow believers is more important than soccer, swim meets or camping trips.  If they grow up thinking church is something you do on the weekends when you have nothing else planned, that’s exactly how they will treat God. You might as well be like Ahaz and close the doors.

Church attendance is a sign of obedience to our Lord.  We should want to be in His house with other believers worshipping and praising His name.  We should crave the fellowship we get when we are together.  Look at your family calendar today and make sure you have your day of worship prioritized.

Father, I do not want to become legalistic about church, but I do want to desire to be there more.  I need other believers in my life to encourage and strengthen my faith. Help me, Father, to make my church a priority in my life.

2 Chronicles 25:2 “He did right in the sight of the Lord, yet not with a whole heart.” 

 YOU HAVE TO BE ALL IN

 Have you ever seen a ball team that played half-hearted?  You could just tell they were not into the game.  They didn’t execute plays well.  They stopped before the whistle blew.  They walked when they should have been running.  Amaziah is described this way.  He was half-hearted.

God expects us to be all in, not half-hearted.  When our heart is divided we cannot receive all He wants to do through us.  Amaziah did a lot of good things, but he also did not rely fully on the Lord, thus ending his reign as king of Judah.

TEACHING MOMENT

Your children may suffer from this “ailment” from time to time.  They may half-heartedly do a chore, which means they have to do it again.  They may half-heartedly study for an exam, which may result in doing poorly.  As parents, our job involves preparing them for life.  We have to teach them to give everything they have to the tasks they have.

Whether they are playing a sport or studying, our children need to learn to give it their all.  Doing something half way almost always ends in disappointment. This applies to their walk with Christ as well.  They can’t have one foot in Christ and one foot in the world.

Do you struggle with divided loyalties?  I have to admit there are times when I don’t give my all.  I get lazy. But thank God His Holy Spirit convicts me of that.  I know my half-heartedness is not pleasing to Him.  I have to confess that as sin and move ahead fully devoted.  How about you?

O Lord, You remind me daily to do my best for You.  Help me to persevere when things get hard.  Remind me to give all I have to please You.

2 Chronicles 22:11a “But Jehoshabeath the king’s daughter took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons who were being put to death, and placed him and his nurse in the bedroom.”

 STEALING FOR THE RIGHT REASON

 Stealing is wrong.  Don’t believe anything else.  But here, in this verse, we find a good thief.  What did Jehoshabeath steal?  Joash, the eventual child king.  Joash’s grandmother was killing all her rivals for the throne after her son died.  She wanted it for her own, and actually had it for a while.  But Jehoshabeath did the right thing and hid Joash to save his life.

Have you ever had to protect someone?  Did protecting them put you in danger?  I’ll never forget protecting my little sister when I was in the second grade. She was in the first grade.  A school bully was picking on her during recess, and I saw it.  I stood up to that bully, who everyone was scared of, and defended my sister. Sometimes, we have to stand up for what’s right, no matter the consequences.

TEACHING MOMENT

 I am not telling you to teach your children to steal or fight.  I am saying your children should be taught to be bold and stand up for the right thing.  What’s the right thing?  Whatever God’s Word says.  We should defend the innocent.  We should stand for life.  We should stand for our beliefs and values.

Little Gertrude and Elrod are going to be challenged by this world.  They will be called intolerant and biased for taking a stand for the things of God.  Let them. Teach them to take pride in that. Doing what’s right feel good.  It pleases the Father.  We don’t know what happened to Jehoshabeath on this earth, but I bet she was rewarded for her actions by God.

Do your actions please the Father?  Are you doing the things you are doing to satisfy yourself, someone else or God? That’s the bottom line question. Nothing you do should be about pleasing anyone but Him.  Then He can bless you for pleasing Him.

Lord, thank You for giving me the wisdom to do what’s right.  You give me the words to follow each day in Your Word.  Help me be bold and courageous in the face of opposition.

2 Chronicles 19:4 “So Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem and went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers.”

GO TO THEM

 What a beautiful picture of love and concern for his people.  Jehoshaphat, the kind of Judah, is the one who went out to his people to bring them back to the Lord.  He was challenged by Jehu, the seer, to seek the Lord.  And he did just that.

We have the same challenge today from our Lord.  We should be going out to the people to bring them back to the Lord. Our hearts should be broken for the lost around us.  If we don’t go out to them, they are destined for an eternal destruction.  Doesn’t that break your heart?

TEACHING MOMENT

 Children naturally want to tell people good news.  They can hardly keep it a secret.  When your little Johnny or Susie comes to Christ, they will want to tell others about it.  Teach them how.

We are witnesses through our words, our deeds, our changed lives and our hunger for His Word.  Teach your children how to tell their story of salvation to others.  Teach them to point others to Jesus by the things they do for Him.

Are you a witness?  Are you reaching out to bring others into the fold?  We all have a responsibility to do so.  It is not just the Pastor’s job or the missionary’s responsibility.  Every believer is a minister of the Gospel. Take your story to the lost world and tell others about the life changing power of the Messiah.

Father, I am grateful for the way You have changed me through Your Son.  Show me how to spread the news.  Give me the boldness and courage to share my story.

2 Chronicles 13:15 “Then the men of Judah raised a war cry, and when the men of Judah raised the war cry, then it was that God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.”

NOT OURS

 This verse could have been written differently.  It could have read “Then the men of Judah raised a war cry, and when the men of Judah raised the war cry, then THEYrouted Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.” Nope, that’s not how it reads.  It was God who routed Jeroboam and his army of 800,000 men.

Don’t you see?  Abijah cried out to God.  The war cry was not so much an attempt to frighten the enemy.  It was a cry to their God.  We don’t know what they cried out.  Perhaps it was something like this – “Fight for Jehovah!  Fight for our God!”  We should do the same.  We have to acknowledge it is God’s battle, not ours.

TEACHING MOMENT

 When your little Elrod or Gertrude learns that it is God who fights for them, they will begin to grow immensely in their walk with Christ.  They do not have to fight the enemy alone.  As they face that bully in school, it is God who will stand with them.  As they are challenged with temptations to lure them away from following Christ, it is God who will have their back.

As Mom and Dad, you must model the same.  You can’t wring your hands and worry when you face a challenge.  You are showing them and even telling them that you are trusting the same God who fought for Judah.  These stories mean something.  They aren’t just inspirational stories.  They are truth.

So, as you face that life challenge today, trust Him.  Cry out to Him.  Give your war cry, not to scare anyone, but to join GOD’S battle.  He has only to speak a word and the enemy is defeated. Let Him fight for you.

Thank You Lord, for facing my enemies for me. They don’t know what they are up against.  Help me show others through my trusting You that they can do the same.

2 Chronicles 9:31 “And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David; and his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.”

IT WILL HAPPEN ONE DAY

 Now, I don’t want to sound morbid, but we will all die one day.  Look at today’s verse.  As great as Solomon was, as rich as Solomon was, as wise as Solomon was – he still died and left all he had to his son.  Nothing he accrued here on earth went with him.

The same is true for us.  Whether you are a beggar on the street or the President of the United States, you will meet your Maker one day.  Nothing can prevent that.  So, the question begs to be asked, “Are you ready?”  That is the most important question I may have asked in this devotional book.  Are you ready for eternity?

TEACHING MOMENT

 Your children are your children for a season.  God has entrusted them into your care for one reason – to lead them to Him. That’s your job.  It’s not the Pastor’s job.  It’s not the Sunday School or small group leader’s job.  It’s yours.  If you spend all the time and money you have educating, feeding and clothing them and they die and go to hell, you have not achieved your purpose in child rearing.

That’s kind of heavy, huh?  Now, I know the decision is theirs.  They must make that personal decision to follow Christ as their Savior and Lord. You can’t make them come to Christ. God knows that.  He won’t hold you accountable for their decision.  However, He expects you to do all you can to lead them to that moment.  What they do with it is up to them.

Death is sure.  For some it is early.  For others it is late.  But it will come to all (unless the Lord returns before that day).  Live your life as if it is your last day.  Share Christ with others.  Live Christ in front of others.  And know that you are ready any day to see Him face to face.

O God, My Savior, I am ready.  I long to see Your face.  But Lord, there are many in my life who don’t know You.  Help me lead them to You.

2 Chronicles 3:1 “Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” 

COMMITTED

As directed by God through his father David, Solomon began the work on the temple. I bet he didn’t know when he started this project that it would be 20 years until it was completed.  I can’t think of anything I have done consistently for 20 years.  That’s a long time.  But Solomon stuck with it.  Why?

I believe we can find two reasons.  One – he wanted to honor his God.  Every aspect of this construction project had one thing in mind.  He wanted to build a “house” worthy of his God.  Two – he wanted to honor his father.  David had been a great king and father and deserved this obedience.

TEACHING MOMENT

 “So, Carl, what do we teach our children or learn ourselves from this verse?”  I’m glad you asked that. Commitment!  Sticking to something!  Too many people today stop trying.  Too many people today give in when it gets hard.  Your children need to learn to stick with what they started. They need to see things through.

I remember one year the team motto for my favorite football team was “Finish the Drill!”  That was their goal for the year.  Finish what they started.  Finish what they came to do. Don’t stop when the going gets tough.  Hang on.

Have you been tempted lately to throw in the towel?  Have you wanted to just stop?  Don’t!  Go back to the One who gave you your marching orders.  Our heavenly Father will give you the strength and determination to continue. Look to Him for the motivation you need to carry on.

Father, on the days I want to quit, don’t let me. Remind me of my calling to follow You wherever You lead.  When I face an obstacle remind me You allowed it to make me better.

2 Chronicles 2:6 “‘But who is able to build a house for Him, for the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain Him? So who am I, that I should build a house for Him, except to burn incense before Him?’”

RECOGNIZE HIS “BIGNESS”

Solomon, at the very beginning of his reign as king, recognized just how big his God was.  He had been instructed by his father David to build a temple for worship.  Solomon knew the “house” he was going to build could not contain God.  It would simply be a place to which the people could come to burn incense and offer sacrifices to their God.

If only Solomon had remembered that all his life.  We know how he strayed to other gods and was wooed away to worship them by some of his concubines and wives.  He seemed to forget just how big his God was.  I wonder what he thought of the temple in those latter years when his heart strayed.

TEACHING MOMENT

 When you take your little Johnny or Susie to church on Sunday, ask them if they know why they go.  As you drive past other churches on the way, ask them why people go there.  Ask them who they are going to worship.  And then ask them how God can be in all those churches at the same time.  Their answers may surprise you.

Children need to understand that God is not bound to a building today.  He loves to see us worship Him in our church. That is important, but He doesn’t live there.  The church is NOT God’s house, as so many people call it.  We are!  As believers, He dwells within us through His Holy Spirit.  So, wherever we go becomes His dwelling place.

Now keep that in mind the next time you are tempted to visit some place you shouldn’t go.  Keep that in mind the next time you treat your body as your own.  Our God is too big to live in us, but He chooses to because of our faith in His Son. Don’t forget that.

I am Your temple here on earth, Father.  I know that.  Remind me to treat my body that way.  I am thankful You dwell within me.

1 Chronicles 26:4-5 “4 Obed-edom had sons: Shemaiah the firstborn, Jehozabad the second, Joah the third, Sacar the fourth, Nethanel the fifth, 5 Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh and Peullethai the eighth; God had indeed blessed him.”

 OBEDIENCE BRINGS BLESSINGS

If you just read these verses you may think, “Big deal!  He had eight sons.  Why does that mean God blessed him?”  Well, you have to go back a little further in the story.  Obed-edom was the man who kept the ark after the incident when David was moving it the first time and the cart tilted and Uzziah put his hand out to stop the ark from falling and was killed on the spot. Remember?  He welcomed the ark into his home after that.

But then Obed-edom followed the ark to Jerusalem when it was moved the second time by David (this time the proper way by hand).  He could have stayed in his home, but he wanted to be near the presence of the Lord.  Can you imagine having the ark in your home?  How could he not follow it?

TEACHING MOMENT

We don’t have an ark to follow today.  As followers of Christ, we have something even better.  We have the presence of God in our lives through the Holy Spirit. And it will never leave us. That is the message for your children.  God blessed Obed-edom for his obedience and faith.  God will bless us for the same reason.

It is so exciting to know that no matter where we go, He is with us.  Your children need to understand that and believe that.  No matter how they are feeling, He is there.  No matter what is happening around them, He is there.  We just have to acknowledge His presence and rest in it.

Are you aware of His presence today?  Do you feel Him working in and through you?  He will, if you will let Him.  Even though He is there, He will not force Himself on you.  He will not turn you into some sort of spiritual robot. But when you yield, He works miracles.

Father, thank You for Your presence in my life today. Help me to yield to Your leading. Let me encourage others along the way.