May 18 - 2 Chronicles 28-31: A Spirit of Prayerful Worship

Everything [Hezekiah] took up, whether it had to do with worship in God's Temple or the carrying out of God's Law and Commandments, he did well in a spirit of prayerful worship. He was a great success. (31:21)

An incredible revival takes place in Judah and parts of Israel. The Temple is restored. The priests and Levites take up their responsibilities once again. Worship is reinstated. The Passover is celebrated as God commanded. There's joy in Jerusalem unlike anything since the days of Solomon.

And it all begins with Hezekiah's devotion to the Lord. That, in itself, is pretty amazing.

Hezekiah, son of arrogant King Ahaz who unleashed an epidemic of depravity in Judah (28:18), [keeps] to the standards of his ancestor David. (29:2) He is a good king who wants to turn history around so that God will no longer be angry with [the Israelites.] (29:10)

Hezekiah's example shows me that it's the heart that matters most. God can make something beautiful of a life fully devoted to Him, regardless of pedigree. What God is seeking is the heart, a spirit of prayerful worship of the Lord.

God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him. (16:9)

"But this is something I'm looking for: a person simple and plain, reverently responsive to what I say." (Isaiah 66:2) 

So what does reverent responsiveness look like in my life? What might a spirit of prayerful worship look like in me?

I think it begins by desegregating my life, eliminating the divide between my spiritual life and my everyday life. It's all relevant and important to God.

"For the godly person, God is the center and focal point of his or her life. Every circumstance and every activity of life, whether in the temporal or spiritual realms, is viewed through the lens of this God-centeredness. However, such a God-centeredness can be developed only in the context of an ever-growing, intimate relationship with God....A person may be moral and upright, or even busy in Christian service, yet have little or no desire to develop an intimate relationship with God. This is a mark of ungodliness." Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate

It's also about putting my complete trust in the power of Christ in me because He gives me the strength to accomplish His will. (Phil 4:13)  It's remembering that I am weak and Christ is strong, that His grace is sufficient for me. (2 Cor. 12:10) It's abiding in Him and growing my intimate fellowship with Him. (John 15:4-8) It's asking God to reveal my sins and actively confessing them as He does. (Ps. 139:23-24, 1 John 1:9, James 5:16) It's inviting the Spirit of God to be on the throne of my life. (Gal. 5:16, 25) It's cultivating a grateful heart and the habit of thanksgiving in all circumstances. (1 Thess. 5:18) And it's staying in God's Word because His Word is truth. (John 17:17)

But as much as I want to make it a performance, about doing the right things, the reality is that a spirit of prayerful worship is more internal than external. It's about my heart first, not my actions. My actions and speech only reveal what's really going on in my heart.

So it's not about what I do; it's about who I truly am, who I'm trusting, at the heart-level that ultimately determines success or failure in God's eyes. Do I long for an intimate relationship with my Lord, for the things that God longs for? Or am I still looking to make my life work?

Frankly, it depends on the day more than I would care to admit. And unfortunately, today I would have settled for making life work, but I didn't even do that well. Lord, have mercy.