Steadfast, Immovable, Abounding

This is the third installment in my series of posts, “People of Prayer”.

If you’re familiar with the Old Testament history of King Hezekiah’s reign, you probably know that he was a good king, one who feared and honored God, tore down idols in Judah, and “clung to the Lord” (2 Kings 18:6). He stands out as one of the few God-honoring kings that Judah or Israel ever had and was blessed with a long and fruitful reign. But servanthood does not mean constant prosperity—and Hezekiah’s story is no exception. In 2 Kings 18 and 19, the Assyrians are attacking and devastating nation after nation, leading even Israel into slavery. At some point, Senacherib (the king of Assyria) seizes all of the fortified cities of Judah, threatening Hezekiah with ruin if he does not submit. Finally, he sends a letter to the Judean king, telling him to quit trusting in the Lord and open his eyes to the devastation Assyria had inflicted on the surrounding lands.

How terrifying that letter must have been for Hezekiah to read! Most of us would have despaired, given up, run away, or rejected our God. But Hezekiah’s reaction is very different: “Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said, ‘O Lord, the God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth’” (2 Kings 19:14, emphasis mine). What an amazing beginning to such a desperate prayer. It is almost unfathomable that Hezekiah could begin by praising God and adoring His greatness. But really, it is the recognition of God’s greatness that leads us to pray to Him in the first place. When we pray with a pure heart, we are admitting our own helplessness and God’s omnipotence.

If you’re like me, you value productivity. You like the feeling of ownership that comes when you take responsibility for completing a task, solving a problem, or helping another person. And while some of that can be healthy (God does not permit laziness), this tendency can also lead us toward pride when we are successful and crippling despair when we lose control. When we put too much of an emphasis on the need to act, we usually skip the first step: spreading it out before the Lord. I absolutely love that phrase in the above passage; it speaks resoundingly to Hezekiah’s posture of surrender before his Creator. The reading of the letter and the going to the Lord’s house is all contained within one verse. Hezekiah didn’t waste any time in bringing his problems to the Father.

In 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Paul writes, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” Contentment with weakness is so counter-cultural in a world that craves self-empowerment. For many of us, prayers of submission can be so difficult because we are admitting our inadequacy and surrendering our autonomy.

Maybe productivity and responsibility aren’t your natural tendency. Maybe your reaction when facing adversity is to go complain to someone about it. Maybe you try to deactivate your senses and pretend like the problem doesn’t exist. I don’t necessarily know what your struggle might be—but we all have something that our flesh turns to before turning to God. In Psalm 74:27-28, Asaph writes, “Those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.” The Lord is referred to as our refuge countless times throughout the Bible, yet so often we don’t view Him as such. We think we must constantly be the warrior fighting far from home instead of the child held safe in the Father’s arms.

Jesus tells His disciples in Luke 12:29-32, “‘And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.’” The war for control is one which we are constantly either fighting or surrendering. It’s never a one-time decision. Too often we pray for rain, then dig up our seeds. We pray for victory over Goliath, then arm ourselves with the world’s protection. We spread out our problems before the Lord, then pick them back up as we leave the altar.

Surrendering control doesn’t mean we never have to act or we never have to speak or we never have to make a decision. But it does mean that we don’t have to do these things unprepared. Time well-spent with the Lord in a prayer of submission leads to a renewed, God-given strength and courage. A courage to act (or a courage to stand still). A courage to speak (or a courage to be silent). A courage to decide (or a courage to let God lead). Spread it all out before the Lord—He will never be helpless nor surprised.

When you’re on your knees and answers seem so far away,

You’re not alone, stop holding on, and just be held.

Your world’s not falling apart, it’s falling into place.

I’m on the throne, stop holding on, and just be held.

Casting Crowns