God Orchestrates The Events Of Our Lives

This week we are looking at the ancient story about King Jehoshaphat found in 2 Chronicles 20. Jehoshaphat was a godly king who led his people in a period of national and spiritual renewal. However, in 2 Chronicles, Jehoshaphat is approached with alarming news...three nations have united their armies for the sole purpose of destroying Jehoshaphat and his people. Jehoshaphat was terrified. But 2 Chronicles 20:3 says, “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord...”

There are a couple of very important principles found in this story. On Monday, we discovered this truth: Obedience to God does not provide His personal guarantee of a trouble-free life. Yesterday, this story reminded us that whenever you are surrounded by problems, you are in a prime position to experience God's miracle-working power.

However, the overarching principle is this story maybe one of the most important truths we will ever learn about God. He is sovereign. He is in control. He orchestrates the events of our lives. Why? Every event in your life is designed to cause you to seek God. Whether you are living for Him or not, whether you are being obedient or not, whether you are living right or not, every event in your life is designed to cause you to seek God.  He loves you so much and His heart's desire is to be intimately involved in your life. Therefore, He orchestrates the events of your life to draw you closer to Him

Jehoshaphat prayed what we could call a prayer of despair. That's where seeking God usually starts. It usually begins from a place of tremendous need, or hurt, or fear. That's because, when we are confronted with pain, we are more likely to cast off the religious façade and really began to seek Him.

What does it mean to seek Him? Tomorrow, we are going to look at five things Jehoshaphat did to seek God.

When You Are Surrounded...Seek God

When Jehoshaphat was given the news that three nations had combined their armies to destroy him and his people, the Bible says he was terrified. He knew he was in over his head. In verse 12 Jehoshaphat prayed to God: “We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do...”

Have you ever felt this way? Have you ever been at a place where you knew you were in over your head? That's where Jehoshaphat was as he faced this attack from multiple enemies. But through this event, he learned that when you are surrounded by enemies, you are in a prime position to experience God's miracle-working power. You are in a place to witness deliverance. And if we can learn the same lessons that he learned, we can experience the same deliverance that Jehoshaphat experienced.

Through this series, we are going to see three things that Jehoshaphat did to experience the deliverance of the Lord. We are going to focus this week on the first thing he did. The Scriptures teach that Jehoshaphat began to seek the Lord. Verse 3 says, “Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance.” The King James Version says “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord...” The first lesson that Jehoshaphat learned was that when you find yourself surrounded by enemies, the first thing you should do is seek the Lord.

The remainder of this week we are going to look at an overarching principle that reshaped Jehoshaphat's fear. And then we will discover five steps he took to seek God. And if we will follow them, we may discover, that like Jehoshaphat, we too can "...can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us."  (2 Chronicles 20:9)

When You Don't Know What To Do

This week, we began a new series called Here Comes Trouble. For the next three weeks we'll be looking at an Old Testament story about a king named Jehoshaphat.  Jehoshaphat was a good king. He tried to do what was right and tried to be obedient in following the Lord.

Even though Jehoshaphat was a good King, he found himself in the same kind of situation that so many of us find ourselves in from time to time. There is a modern myth in the American branch of Christianity that implies that if you are obedient ot God, you won't have any problems.  But is simply not true. Obedience is not a guarantee to a trouble-free life. Their is a major over-arching principle that we will discover this week that is much more important than our personal comfort.

Jehoshaphat was in a really serious situation and he didn't know what to do. But in this story, we discover how he was able to get out of it. If you've ever had problems, I think you'll like this series.

So, what was Jehoshaphat's situation? Let's take a look at his story. The Bible says in verses 1, 2: “After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat. Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, ‘A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. They are already at Hazazon-tamar.’”

They were saying, "King, here comes trouble." Three nations formed an alliance for the specific purpose of conquering Jehoshaphat and the people of Israel. Together they made a vast army and a formidable, some might even say undefeatable, opponent.

Has that ever happened to you? Your just trying to do the best you can, tried to be faithful on your job, tried to have a good marriage, tried to raise good kids and yet it seems like every negative thing in the world has come against you? Financial problems, health problems, career problems, and relationship problems form an alliance to attack you all at once, and together they're just too big for you to handle on your own. Has this ever happened to you? Is it happening right now?

This week we are going to look at "What to do when you don't know what to do?" But more importantly, we are going to discover an over-arching principle about why good and bad things happen to us.

An Attitude of Servanthood / A Spirit of Hope

In the town of Port Hope, Canada, there is a monument erected, not for the leading citizen who just died, but for a poor, unselfish working man who gave most of his life and energy to help those who could not repay him.

Joseph Scriven was born in Dublin 1820. In his youth, he had the prospect of being a great citizen with high ideals and great aspirations. He was engaged to a beautiful young woman who had promised to share his dreams. But on the eve of their wedding, her body was pulled from a pond into which she had accidentally fallen and drowned. Young Scriven never overcame the shock. Although a college graduate and ready embark on a brilliant career, he began to wander to try to forget his sorrow. His wanderings took him to Canada where he spent the last forty-one of his sixty-years.  He became a very devout Christian. His beliefs led him to do servile labor for poor widows and sick people. He often served for no wages.

It was not known that Mr. Scriven had any poetic gifts until a short time before his death. A friend, who was sitting with him in an illness, discovered a poem he had written to his mother in a time of sorrow; not intending that anyone else should see it.  His poem was later set to music and has become a much loved Gospel song. It is said to be the first song that many missionaries teach their converts. In polls taken to determine the popularity of hymns and Gospel songs, his poem set to music is always near the top. What was his poem?

What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear.
What a privilege to carry, Everything to God in prayer.
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh what needless pain we bear;
All because we do not carry, Everything to God in prayer.

Romans 15:13 says, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." But an important sidebar is that the context of this hope is discovered in verses 1-2 of the same chapter: "We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up." The connection? An attitude of servanthood produces a spirit of hope. They are intertwined. You can't have hope without a willingness to please [our] neighbor for HIS good. Once we become a member of the family, our goal is always the good of others. It should never be "What am I going to get out of it."

So as we close this week looking at the Gospel of Hope, let's endure the difficulties of life, find encouragement from the Word, and seek not to please ourselves, but our neighbor.

The Encouragement of Scripture

Romans 15:4 tells us that another way to gain God’s kind of hope is through the encouragement of Scripture. "For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have HOPE."

Psalm 119:43 reinforces this truth: "Do not snatch the word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws." Verse 74 also says: "May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word." Verse 81 adds: "My soul faints with longing for your salvation, but I have put my hope in your word."

We receive hope FROM His word. The Word of God fills us with hope because it gives us examples of the faithfulness of God and the way in which He can and will work in our lives.  Whether we are reading about the Israelites deliverance at the Red Sea, David's conquest of Goliath, or Daniel's battle in the lion's den, those stories remind us of the faithfulness of God in the lives of people, who, at the time were leading pretty ordinary lives.  Yet for these ordinary people, because of their willingness to endure and remain faithful through broken relationships, fallen heroes, and crushed dream, God acknowledged a great experience for them.

When I read about His faithfulness in those stories, I am reminded of how I can trust God for the Red Seas, the Goliaths, and the lions of my life.