Heal Our Land

2 Chronicles 20:15–23

[15] And he said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the LORD to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s. [16] Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeruel. [17] You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the LORD will be with you.”

[18] Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD, worshiping the LORD. [19] And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.

[20] And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. And when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” [21] And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the LORD and praise him in holy attire, as they went before the army, and say,

“Give thanks to the LORD, for his steadfast love endures forever.”

           [22] And when they began to sing and praise, the LORD set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed. [23] For the men of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, devoting them to destruction, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy one another. (ESV)

When I read about “battles” in my younger years I could not relate. Partly because I was not in the midst of a battle but partly because I thought of it literally. I could not see myself actually fighting someone. 

Now though, I feel that there are battles all around me. There are battles within families, friends and family who have not made a commitment to Jesus, addictions, fear of the future, political disagreements, government, health issues, money problems. The list goes on! If you can’t identify with one of these right now, just wait, you will. 

In this story, the enemies of Judah and Jerusalem were coming up against them. They were planning on attacking them, but the people were told to NOT FEAR! (HOW many times in the Bible does it tell us not to fear!? There must be a good reason!!) But look what God does for them. They were told to stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord. They went out as told, waited and soon their enemies destroyed each other. God handled everything. He always does. Why do we then take all of these issues on ourselves to worry about?

Luke 12:25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life?

Matt 6:34 There for do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself

I know one of the big “fears” people are anxious about right now is the election next week. Just remember, the battle is the Lords. Our job is to pray, and to praise. If you get anxious about anything this week, take those thoughts captive, push them away and start singing praise songs. God in His goodness has a plan. Nothing will be a surprise to Him and He will still be in control. Our salvation is secure in Him, so we have nothing to fear about tomorrow.

Dear Lord, lead our nation in the way you want it to go. Push evil out. Heal our land. Amen.

 2 Chron: If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Shirlene Peterson