Fully Committed

2 Chronicles 16:9 

“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”  

After Rehoboam passed away we read about his son Abijah being king over Judah for the next ten years. The Bible tells us that there was peace for those years because Abijah followed the Lord. Abijah’s son Asa becomes king over Judah next. Like his father, he also followed the Lord God and for most of his reign it was peaceful until the very of his last years as king. King Asa didn’t do anything that was bad nor did he commit some detestable act against the Lord.  We find king Asa in the previous chapter surrounded by the Cushite’s outnumbered by 2 to 1.  King Asa called upon the Lord first before he drew up battle plans and the Lord heard his prayer and Judah won a great battle that day. 

Now it is the king of Israel, Baasha, who is marching against Judah as did Jeroboam years before under Abijah. Instead of consulting the Lord first, King Asa reacts by bribing the king of Aram to break his alliance with Baasha, which happens, and Judah is saved once again.  The Lord was not pleased with Asa because he simply acted out of his own will instead of consulting the Lord first as he did against the Cushite’s.  For this, the Lord told him he would be at war for the rest of his days.  Bitter and angry, he did not consult the Lord again even on his death bed stricken with disease.

We can learn from King Asa.  The Lord wants you to consult Him and pray about everything.  It would be foolish to pray over what shoes to wear every day, but the Lord does want you and me to have a constant connection with the Him being fully committed to Him. The result of this is that He will strengthen your heart.  If you have ever met someone with a strengthened heart you would notice a peace and strength in their character. You would notice an almost unwavering calm in everything they do. I can tell you this kind of character is only achievable if the Lord is at the center of your life.

If you are having trouble making decisions lately or find yourself wandering through the silly puddy of emotional distress, you might be pulling a “King Asa” and doing it your way. We are faced with decision points in front of us every day. Measuring the consequences of our decisions is what we all have to live through.  Take a moment and measure your heart. Is it strong and peaceful or is it a mess of confusion and reactions.  The Lord wants to give your heart strength and to achieve this, you must be fully committed to Him like the verse says.  Try it and I am sure you won’t go back to doing it your own way!