“For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”
~ 2 Chronicles 16:9
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you know that there is always Someone with you? Why do think that there is always Someone with you? Are you okay with always having Someone with you? Do you know Who this Someone is Who is always with you? God the Spirit is the Someone Who is always with you is. Why do you think that God the Spirit is always with you? God the Spirit has been tasked by God the Father to ensure will happen what He ordained and wrote in a book that He has in heaven about every guy, gal and kid. Your grandpaa believes that God the Father elected you to be His adopted kids before He created the universe. You still need to – if you have not done so already, make a decision of faith to believe in what God the Father did when He had His Son – God the Son – Jesus, be hung on and nailed to a cross for His body to suffer and die to defeat death and to give eternal life and for His blood to flow out from His body to cover once and for all all the sins of every guy, gal and kid who God the Father elected for Himself to be His adopted kids before He created the universe – which includes planet Earth.
How do you know that God the Spirit is always with you? Your grandpaa knows that it could only have been God the Spirit Who a number of times divinely protected your grandmaa and grandpaa from a catastrophe. As your grandpaa one summer in Bolivia was driving from San Ignacio to Villa Cruz – a thirty kilometer drive, where your grandmaa and grandpaa were taking a summer team of college age guys and gals in their C-10 Chevrolet pickup, your grandpaa heard coming from underneath the pickup a sharp ping. When your grandpaa heard a sharp ping coming from underneath the pickup, your grandpaa immediately sensed that something had happened to the pickup. Your grandpaa had driven earlier that day from Concepción, Ñuflo de Chávez to San Ignacio – which was at least a five hour trip, over a winding, very rough dirt road that went through creeks and up and down steep hills. Before that summer’s summer team arrived in Bolivia, your grandpaa had mechanic in Concepción – whose shop was located directly across the street from where your grandmaa and grandpaa were living and administrating the rural resident Bible education and leadership training program, tighten the steering on the C-10 Chevrolet pickup as there had been a lot of play in the steering wheel. The mechanic who your grandpaa went to to tighten up the loose steering was a good mechanic but . . . the sharp ping that your grandpaa heard under his pickup was the sound of a nut hitting the underside of the pickup when it bounced off the gravel road after it came off the end of the steering wheel shaft. This nut was really important as it held the end of the steering wheel shaft to the steering linkage of the pickup that your grandmaa and grandpaa owned. When your grandpaa heard the sharp ping coming from underneath his pickup, your grandpaa immediately took his foot off the gas. When your grandpaa turned the pickup’s steering wheel, the steering wheel spun freely as it was no longer attached to the pickup’s steering linkage. When your grandpaa spun the steering wheel of their pickup in front of your grandmaa, your grandmaa told your grandpaa not to step on the brake. When the nut came off the end of the pickup’s steering wheel shaft, your grandpaa was no longer able to steer his pickup. Where the nut came off the end of the steering wheel shaft of his pickup’s steering shaft, your grandpaa was driving on a straight stretch of road where there were not any steep drop-offs next to the road’s edge, your grandpaa was not driving fast and there were no vehicles coming towards your grandpaa. The only thing that your grandpaa could do – with a load of college age guys and gals in the back of the pickup, was to let the pickup slowly meander down the gravel road to coast to a stop without stepping on the brake and hoping that it would not go off the road and tip over. It was a miracle to your grandmaa and grandpaa that the nut at the end of the steering wheel shaft of their C-10 Chevrolet pickup came off where it did because if the nut had worked itself off on their trip from Concepción to San Ignacio – with that year’s summer team of college age guys and gals, when your grandpaa was going down a steep hill or where there was a steep drop-off or when there was traffic coming toward them or . . .
Hanani was a seer. Seers were like prophets. Hanani was a seer spokesman for God. The chronicler recounts in 2 Chronicles 16 what happened to Hanani after Hanani confronted Asa – a king who was ruling over the guys and gals who living in Judah’s land area, for going to Ben-Hadad – the king who was ruling over the guys and gals who were living in Aram, for his help instead of going to God for His help. Asa had gone to Ben-Hadad for help because Baasha – the king who was ruling over the guys and gals who were living in Israel’s land area, was keeping guys and gals who were living in Israel’s land area from going into Judah’s land area and guys and gals who were living in Judah’s land area from entering Israel’s land area, by fortifying Ramah – a key town. Asa sent to Ben-Hadad in Damascus, Aram the silver and the gold from the treasuries that were in the Lord’s temple and in his palace. When Hanani confronted Asa about what he did, Hanani told Asa in verse 9, “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war.”” Have you ever been told that you have done a foolish thing? How did you feel? Asa was so mad at Hanani for what he told him that he put him in prison. Because He was not okay with Asa, God caused Asa to have a really bad foot disease which . . . Asa still would not ask God for His help; he would only ask his doctor for his help. When you need help, do not forget that God the Spirit is always with you – always ready to help you.
2 Chronicles 16 (404)