2 Chronicles 11:5-6a “5 Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem and built cities for defense in Judah. 6 Thus he built Bethlehem,” 

 A DESIGNATED PLACE

 Rehoboam probably had no idea when he fortified Bethlehem as a city of defense in Judah that one day the Messiah would be born there.  I think it is only fitting that Jesus would be born in a safe place.  After all, He IS the safe place.  He is the designated Savior of the world.  Who better to be from a safe place?

Now, there were a lot of years between Rehoboam and the birth of Christ.  I don’t know all that happened to the city of Bethlehem in that time, but one thing I do know – it remained the safest place in the world for Jesus to be born.  God the Father chose a place to bring an infant into the world that would allow Him to be born safely.  He does the same for us – He gives us a safe place.

TEACHING MOMENT

 What kind of safe place do your children have?  They have you to protect them?  They have parents who will do anything to keep them safe, right?  But as diligent as you are, you cannot protect their hearts and souls.  That is God’s job.  That is why you must lead them to Him as early as you can.

I get so puzzled by parents who will make their kids go to school, ball games and family events, but will let them make their own choice about attending church.  “Well, Gertrude has to make her own mind up about religion.” Hogwash!  If you allowed her to make her mind up about school, do you think she would go?  We cannot MAKE them accept Christ, but we must have them in the environment where He is taught.  That’s their ultimate safe place – their Bethlehem.

How safe are you today?  Are you relying on Him to keep you safe or are you making it on your own?  “God, I’ve got this.”  That kind of attitude will lead you into very unsafe territory.  Turn to the Child of Bethlehem, the fortified city.

God, thank You for sending Your Son to be my safe place. I know I can rest in Him.  He will guard my soul and heart.

Matthew 8:32 “And He said to them, ‘Go!’ And they came out and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the waters.”

 ONE WORD

 I have always loved this story. My uncle was a pig farmer, so I saw pigs a lot.  They are nasty animals.  They smell. They stay dirty.  They are just nasty.  But to see them full of demons – now that would be a sight.  And then to see them all run in the water and drown – that would have been crazy.

But that is exactly what happened. Jesus commanded the demons inside the two men to leave.  But notice He just said one word – GO!  The demons had chosen the pigs.  I guess pigs are better than nothing.  With one word He sent them.  They didn’t leave until He said, “Go!”  But then they obeyed Him.

TEACHING MOMENT

 There are a couple of lessons here for our children.  One – Jesus loves everyone, even those who may appear a little crazy.  He had compassion on these two deranged, tormented souls.  He set them free.  We don’t know what happened to them afterwards, but I have to believe their lives were changed and they couldn’t help but tell the story to everyone.

Secondly, children need to understand that Jesus is the ultimate authority.  Even the demons have to obey Him.  And if demons, who hate Jesus, have to obey Him when He speaks, why wouldn’t we, who love Him, want to obey Him?  Hearing the Lord’s voice is one thing, but obeying it is so much more important.  And they obeyed immediately.  They didn’t ask for more time or a better breed of pigs.  They obeyed.

Are you obeying the Lord’s commands? Or are you picking and choosing which commands fit your schedule or your lifestyle?  Obedience is not optional.  If you are a follower of Christ, you must obey His commands. Followers follow.  Ask Him right now what His orders are for today.  He may just surprise you.

Father God, thank You for sending Your Son to rescue me. I, too, was tormented and deranged before He came into my life.  Help me obey each day and do it with joy.

2 Chronicles 4:10a “Solomon also made all the things that were in the house of God:”

 NOTHING LEFT TO CHANCE

 You may read 2 Chronicles 4 and start yawning.  Don’t! It’s a short chapter.  Read the whole chapter two or three times and then tell me what you read.  Did you see it?  God left nothing to chance when He gave all the details to David to give to Solomon. And then Solomon “made all the things that were in the house of God.”

 Look at the numbers.  Look at all the furnishings.  This was going to be God’s house, and it was going to look right. How many times have you hurried to straighten your house when company was coming?  You made sure everything was just right.  Why?  Because you wanted your house to look respectable.  Solomon wanted to make sure God’s house was the talk of the known world. He was honoring God by his actions.

 TEACHING MOMENT

 This is a perfect verse to read to your children when you send them to clean their room.  Keeping their room clean is important.  Why?  Because cleanliness is next to godliness?  Well, maybe. But that’s not the reason.  You are teaching them to care for their things. Everything they have in that room really belongs to God, right?  Every toy! Every sock!  Every piece of furniture.  As believers, we believe that.  It’s all His.  And if it is His, take care of it.

I truly believe if we teach our children that when they are young they will learn to care for their possessions in a whole different way.  They will learn to only purchase things that would give glory to God.  That leaves those questionable cd’s out.  That leaves the wrong kind of clothing out.  Just as Solomon took care of God’s house, we need to take care of His stuff He is letting use.

Do you have a reverent respect for God’s stuff?  Don’t you wish you could have made some of those items for the temple?  Remember, all your stuff is God’s too.  Treat it that way!  Honor God by seeing all your possessions as totally His.

Thank You, Father, for blessing me with all I have. I want to hold these as if I am holding Your possessions.  I am truly in awe of how You have blessed me.

Matthew 3:17 “and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.’”

 HE CALLS US BELOVED, TOO

 Jesus was always pleasing His Father. He knew no other way to live. Every thought He had was directed toward that.  He had a mission to complete, which He knew would please the Father.  Nothing else mattered.  Just please the Father by His works.  Please the Father by His words. Please the Father by…everything He did.

Isn’t that a worthy example to follow? Now, we weren’t sent to earth to die for mankind.  There is only one Savior.  But we do have a mission.  Our mission is to share the love of Christ with as many as possible.  Our mission is to be Jesus to the lost around us.  When we do that we also please the Father. Then we can hear Him say, “This is My beloved in whom I am well pleased.”

TEACHING MOMENT

 Don’t you love when your children are obedient?  Of course, you love them regardless, but when they obey you willingly, doesn’t it just warm your heart?  Tell them. They need to hear that.  They say it takes ten praises to balance out one criticism.  I don’t know if that is true or not, but I do know it is much better to praise than critique.

The next time your little Johnny or Susie does something before you ask them to do it, praise them.  Tell them you are well pleased.  Tell them how it makes you feel when you see them choosing right rather than wrong.  And then tell them how their heavenly Father is also well pleased with those choices. They really need to hear that.

Are you pleasing the Father today? Are you willing to accomplish the mission God has given you?  If you are grateful for your salvation, share it.  Tel someone today about Jesus.  The Father will smile.

Father, I want to see You smile on me.  I know You love me regardless, but I want to please You. Help me tell others just how great You are.

2 Chronicles 36:15-16 “15 The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place; 16 but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, until there was no remedy.” 

NO CHANGE

 How often do you read these stories in the Old Testament and say, “Boy, those Israelites were dumb.  God gave them so many chances.”?  Oh really?  Aren’t we the same?  God sends people in our lives time and time again, but we ignore them.  We hear our Pastor preach the Word to us over and over, but we choose to do things our way instead.  We are no different than the Israelites.

And, unfortunately, if we don’t repent and turn back to Him, we will suffer the same wrath from the same God.  Our only hope is Jesus.  It says it here, and it is still true – “there is no remedy.”  I don’t care how hard you try to “fix it,” it can’t be done.  God gives us chance after chance.  But He will not ignore our lack of change, our lack of repentance, or our lack of return to Him.

TEACHING MOMENT

Children must be taught early that their disobedience will result in discipline.  We teach our children to obey, not to just have them comply to OUR rules.  No!  We are modeling what they must do to obey God.  They learn to obey us so they will learn to obey God.  That’s why it is SO important that you model your child rearing after God’s parenting style.

God has a parenting style?  You had better believe it.  He loves unconditionally.  He sets guidelines and borders to keep us safe.  He corrects us when we stray.  He gives us free choice, but holds us accountable for our choices. He receives us back time after time when we repent and ask for forgiveness.  What better parenting style can you get?

Are you the rebellious one?  Do you ignore God’s prodding time and time again? Today, stop and return.  Ask forgiveness.  Seek mercy and receive grace.  He is waiting.

O merciful God, forgive me for all the times I ignore Your messengers.  Help me hear You through all the noise around me.  Thank You for always loving me.

2 Chronicles 35:3 “He also said to the Levites who taught all Israel and who were holy to the Lord, ‘Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel built; it will be a burden on your shoulders no longer. Now serve the Lord your God and His people Israel.’”

 ITS RIGHTFUL PLACE

 Have you ever been told, “Put that back!”  Oh, I remember well when I was little.  I would go down to my dad’s shop with him to watch him work on something.  He had every kind of tool a little boy could want – drills, saws, hammers, etc.  But if I ever picked up a tool that was beyond my ability, my dad would say, “Put that back!”  He wanted me to be safe, and he wanted his tools in their right place.

After Josiah had restored the temple he commanded the Levites to return the ark to the holy of holies.  What?! Why wasn’t it there to begin with. Well, it had obviously been moved. Perhaps it was moved to keep it safe from the rebellious kings in the past who had tried to stop the people from worshipping.  Perhaps it was moved to keep it safe while they renovated the temple.  Whatever the reason, it now belonged back in its rightful place.

TEACHING MOMENT

Everything belongs in its rightful place.  That includes your kids.  Your kids belong to God.  He gave them to you for a short time to invest in them, to teach them about Him, to love them and to give them back to Him.  You need to teach them that their heart belongs to God.  He longs to have them come home.

Your children will only experience true peace when they place their heart back in its rightful place – the hands of God.  When they surrender to Jesus, He restores them to their spot in His heart. He has a spot for all of us.  I don’t understand how He can absorb everyone into His heart, but He can.

Where is your heart right now?  Is it in its rightful place?  Put it back where it belongs.  Keep your heart safe.  There is no safer place for your heart to rest than in the capable, loving hands of God. He will NEVER break your heart.  He will never desert you.  Put it back.

O God, lover of my heart, take my heart back where it belongs.  Show me the love it desires has always been there.  Thank You for loving me so well.

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.