God Has Seen Your Tears! By Babatunde Olugboji
As we end the series on how to respond to bad news, using the reaction of King Hezekiah to a series of terrible events, we will conclude on how God came good for him.
The Bible makes us understand that all of a sudden, the king became sick and near death. And Prophet Isaiah declared to him: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ (Isaiah 38:1) Thus, Isaiah pronounced a death sentence on the king. It wasn’t made clear in the Bible how and why Hezekiah became sick; all we know was that he was struck by a terrible sickness.
Hezekiah’s response was spot on, as he faced the wall and prayed to God. He decided to react with calm and reasoning instead of yelling. He decided to take the time to approach his Father in heaven instead of rushing off to his next appointment. He decided to make a healthier choice instead of looking for whom to blame. He knew that when a believer leans on God in times of trouble, he or she will be filled with God’s peace and comfort. He knew that we are called to pray, and that God designed us for it.
Praying is built into our very existence. Because we are created in God’s image, we are to do like Christ did. Jesus prayed to remain in the Father’s will. So as Christ imitators, prayer is necessary to remain in his will also.
Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray (Mark 1:35). My prayer is not for the world, but for those You have given Me, because they belong to You (John 17:1). They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary, the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus (Acts 1:14). All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer (Acts 2:42).
And God sent back Isaiah to the king: “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years. (Isaiah 38:4-5). God heard Hezekiah’s prayer and gave him two gifts. First, He gave him the gift of an extended life. Second, He gave the gift of knowing he only had 15 years left. If he were wise, this would still give King Hezekiah the motivation to walk right with God and to set his house in order.
In this world, getting bad news or dreadful reports is inevitable, but all we have to do is learn from Hezekiah, and turn such reports over to God. The God who dealt with almost 2 million Assyrians in a single night, the God who commuted Hezekiah’s death sentence is still the same God, and he is willing and able to give you victory this week.
As you proceed on whatever you are doing this week, lay that terrible situation before God, and watch him do great and mighty things in your life.
Have a great week.
Kingdom Dynamics, a weekly column is written by Dr. Babatunde Olugboji, the President, Kingdom House, a non-profit organization in New Jersey, USA.
