II Kings 18:21 Behold, are you trusting now in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it.  Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.

If anyone would know not to trust the Egyptians you would think it would be the Israelites? So what are the Assyrian’s doing here? Well, perhaps they are working through all the places that the Israelites could look for help and discounting them one by one. Their aim is to help the Israelites see that resistance is pointless, that no one is coming to their help, so they should just give in without a fight and take what is coming to them. The seed is planted in their thoughts is to take the best tangible outcome that is on offer right now.

Hezekiah already knows that gold and silver won’t save him, the Assyrians have now told him that clever words won’t save him, and neither will the power of the mighty Egyptians. The Assyrians,  in the next verse, misconceiving the circumstances, even suggest that the Israelite’s God is no different from any of the other cities’ gods and that there is no point expecting any help there. (we will look at this in more detail next time)

What about you and me? Do we sometimes rely on our own resources or clever words to make a way for us through seemingly impossible situations? Do we look to friends who are wealthy or influential to come to our rescue, putting away any thoughts of what that may mean in the longer term? Do we even sometimes discount God, maybe assuming he expects us to work it out, or perhaps wrongly believing that he won’t help us?

Do our short term decisions line up with our best long term outcomes?

When I reflect on the difficulties that Wendy and I have walked through it seems to me that they are always about trust, or in other words, faith.

Where will Hezekiah put his faith now? Where will you and I equally put our faith in the challenges that we face each day?

Maybe you are in the middle of a massive challenge and it seems too big for you. I’d like to encourage you to take heart, to stir up your faith, and to make short term decisions that line up with your very best long term outcomes. God can be trusted, especially when it may seem impossible.

Blessings

Allan

Principle 25 – we can trust God.

Strength – Belief: People exceptionally talented in the Belief theme have certain core values that are unchanging. Out of these values emerges a defined purpose for their lives.