2 Chronicles 33:10-13 “10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention. 11 Therefore the Lord brought the commanders of the army of the king of Assyria against them, and they captured Manasseh with thongs (nose hooks), bound him with bronze chains and took him to Babylon. 12 When he was in distress, he entreated the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. 13 When he prayed to Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God.”

WHAT WILL GOD HAVE TO DO?

I have seen a lot of people with nose piercings.  I have asked several what they did when they need to blow their nose.  I would be afraid I would blow mine out, if I had one.  Well, Manasseh had a nose piercing too.  But his was put in by the king of Assyria, attached to a chain or rope and used to lead him into captivity.  I bet that hurt!

God had to humble Manasseh greatly to get his attention.  He was an evil king who had led Judah into horrible idolatry, worse than even the people who lived in Canaan before Israel arrived.  Finally, God had enough.  Will God have to take you into “captivity” to get your attention?

TEACHING MOMENT

Often children think if they are not caught for doing wrong they have gotten away with it.  Moms and Dads, we need to make sure they understand that all sin will be dealt with.  Unconfessed sin in a believer’s life begins to build that wall between us and God.  Sure, we are still saved, but we lose that fellowship.  Sooner or later, we stop hearing God’s voice and feeling His Spirit.

God will not let His children continue in unconfessed sin.  He will get our attention, one way or another.  We must teach our children to stay “confessed up” with God.  It’s really simple.  And how beautiful it is to have restored fellowship with the Lord.

Father, will You help me today to lay out all my dirty laundry before you?  You already know it’s there.  Its stench is before You.  Cleanse me, Lord, so I can walk confidently once again in Your presence.

2 Chronicles 30:10 “So the couriers passed from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them.” 

NO RESPECT

In the past when you invited someone to church or tried to share the Gospel with them, they would either politely listen or at least pretend to.  Not any more.  Today people will literally spit in your face and laugh at you.  There seems to be no respect for the things of the Lord.  He is just not revered now. Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 29:16a “So the priests went in to the inner part of the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and every unclean thing which they found in the temple of the Lord they brought out to the court of the house of the Lord.” 

CLEANSING

Hezekiah, king of Judah, issued a command of the Levites to get the house of God back in order after it had been neglected and basically trashed.  The Word does not say what was in the temple, but it must not have been holy.  The verse says, “every unclean thing” was removed. Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 26:16 “But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the Lord his God, for he entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.”

IT COMES BEFORE THE FALL

Uzziah was a good king.  He was the longest ruling king of Judah and did many great things for the Lord.  But…pride entered the scene.  The above verse reads, “But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the Lord his God…”  Uzziah began to think he could do anything.

There is much danger in thinking that way.  For Uzziah, the result was leprosy imposed by God to humble him and remove him from power.  He spent the rest of his life virtually in solitude, and his son ran the kingdom.  Don’t you bet he begged God every day for cleansing?  Don’t you bet every morning he would jump up and look to see if the leprosy was gone?  Regrets!

TEACHING MOMENT

We want our children to be proud of their accomplishments, but we must also teach them how to be humble.  A proud person can become annoying very quickly.  A humble person is always giving credit to someone else for their success.  As believers, we know everything we are and do is because of the Lord God.  He deserves all the credit.

The next time your child has a success (ballgame win, an A in school, etc.) help them to point to God.  Remind them that He is the one who gives them their abilities. Remind them that He is the one who allows them the strength to compete in games or the intellect to achieve good grades.  And then help them to voice that to others.

We all like to be recognized for things we do.  That motivates us to continue doing good.  But let the recognition of others roll off your back like water off a duck’s back.  Then let the Lord’s pleasure in you sink deep in your soul.  After all, only His praise really matters.

O Father, I know You are the only one who gives true praise.  Remind me daily, Lord, to give back to You any praise I receive.

2 Chronicles 21:20 “He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years; and he departed with no one’s regret, and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.”

I’M GLAD HE’S GONE

Jehoram was not a good king.  He wasn’t even a good man.  The moment he became king at age 32 he killed all his brothers.  His father, Jehoshaphat, had been such a good king, but Jehoram wanted nothing of that.  He wanted everything for himself.

The phrase in this verse “with no one’s regret” is sad.  It means no one was sad to see him die.  They were glad he was gone.  There was nothing pleasant about Jehoram, so there was nothing to miss.  Have you ever been to a funeral like that?  It’s sad.

TEACHING MOMENT

Our children should be taught to live their live in such devotion to the Lord that people will truly miss them when they are gone.  That may seem kind of strange to say, but think about it.  We are either going to be missed when we are gone or not.  I would hate to know when I die that no one would even notice.  I know I am not indispensable, but I do want people to know I’m gone.  Lol

So, how do we “leave our mark” on this world?  Simple, we show our children how to impact others.  We share the gospel so that others are His children too.  We love others so they will love others.  We lend a hand to others so they, in turn, will lend a hand to others.  That will leave a mark on this world so that when we are gone people will say, “We are going to miss him.”

How are you “marking” the world?  Jehoram left a mark, but it wasn’t a good one.  What do you want written on your gravestone?  Have you thought about that?  What will your family say at your funeral?  What will the memories of you be about?  Those are the marks you leave.

Father, please let me leave Your mark on this world.  Allow me to share the Word with others so that You can stamp your image on them.  That would be all I need to be remembered for, for being the one to lead them to You.

2 Chronicles 20:15c “Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s.”

JUST WATCH

I love this story about Jehoshaphat.  A great army is coming down to destroy Judah.  So, what does Jehoshaphat do?  He turns to God.  He calls all Judah to prayer, and God answers. He gives these words to Jahaziel who prophesied to the group.  Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 18:13 “But Micaiah said, ‘As the Lord lives, what my God says, that I will speak.’”

GOD’S WORDS

Many of us remember the 1960’s TV show “Dragnet.”  One of the phrases you heard practically every week on the show from Joe Friday while he questioned a witness was “Just the facts, ma’am.”  In other words, I only want to hear what you actually know. Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 15:17b “…nevertheless Asa’s heart was blameless all his days.” 

BLAMELESS

Asa was the third king of Judah after the divided nation.  He was a good king who even removed his mother from a positon of power due to her blasphemous deeds.  That took a pure heart and one solely dedicated to God.  In fact, the Hebrew word here for blameless can mean whole or perfect.  Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 12:1 “When the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong, he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the Lord.”

MY OWN STRENGTH

One generation!  That’s all it took!  Solomon and his father David had established a great nation.  In Solomon’s time peace finally reigned in the country.  But Rehoboam wasted no time destroying that peace and ruining the country.  Under him, according to the prophecy of the Lord, the kingdom split.  Continue reading →

2 Chronicles 8:16 “Thus all the work of Solomon was carried out from the day of the foundation of the house of the Lord, and until it was finished. So the house of the Lord was completed.”

SEEING IT THROUGH

The temple wasn’t a quick project. It took years to complete.  Solomon was involved from the foundation up and even oversaw the manufacture of the utensils and all the furnishings.  He was determined to stick with it to the end to make sure this temple truly was worthy of Jehovah God.

Isn’t it sad, that after all this work on the building that Solomon eventually turned his back on God and began to worship other gods which his wives introduced to him?  He was led astray from his own faith.  If only his determination regarding building the temple had carried over into his faith.

TEACHING MOMENT

This is a great example to teach our kids.  Their faith walk doesn’t begin and end at salvation.  It is a lifelong process.  They must stick with it to the end.  God will give them the strength and determination to remain loyal to Him, if they ask.  But they can’t just check off “the box of faith” and then go on and live as they wish.

As parents, our job is to guide them in this walk.  I was asked recently by some parents about the believability of their 6 year old son’s salvation.  They have questioned and questioned him to make sure his salvation is true.  My advice was to believe with him that it is and do all they can to disciple him in his walk.  Only God knows for sure the reality of anyone’s salvation.  Help them “stick with it.”

Are you “sticking with it”?  Do you have the determination to remain loyal and true to the Lord?  What is stopping you from seeing your faith through to the end?  The Lord will allow things in our lives to test us in order to make us more like Him. These tests will allow our faith to get stronger.  Trust Him in those times.

Father, give me the sticktoitness I need to remain loyal and true.  Help me to pass on this to my children so they too will see it through.