2 Chr 29: 1-11

Hezekiah was the next king to ascend the throne from the line of Ahaz. According to the Scriptures, Hezekiah was 25 years old when he became king. And he ruled for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah. She was the daughter of Zechariah. I guess that was pretty significant given she was the prophet's daughter and perhaps was very instrumental in his upbringing and in how he was to perceive the kingdom as well as his relationship to God. It shouldn't be surprising that he went "old school" and back to basics of restoring the temple and the kingdom back to a level of prominence. It seems he started right away in restoring the temple and it started with the Levites and making themselves holy and acceptable for service. He then started on the physical appearance of the temple and had it cleaned up from the rubbish that as accumulated since the building was basically abandoned. He recognized the importance of the relationship between Judah and the Lord and thus he made it his primary goal to restore that with the people by giving the facts of what had occured and how to rectify it. According to the commentary: Hezekiah intended to turn back to the LORD. He wanted to start again the worship of God in the LORD’s temple. He told the priests and the Levites to do the tasks that the LORD had called them to. Then he believed that the LORD would not be angry with them.

A refreshing read after a dismal few chapters...

Spent another great day with GG and took it at a lot easier pace than the other two. Still got up @ 4:30 MT to keep some semblance of my East Coast head clock and did the same today. Hopefully the jet lag will be minimal. After getting the free tickets for today's game for GG, we headed to mountains and the casino area - very pretty drive as we border a stream/river for the drive. The casino had a so-so brunch buffet and we then proceeded to contribute to the economy. Actually, I did relatively well netting 8 cents for the day. Never knew that penny slots could be so fun and actually hit the jackpot (with $2.42 left) and paid off my losses in the quarter slots. Still it was a good day to spend with him. Went to his church for a 7 PM service - I am so glad he's going to a more local church and is going regularly to that service since his weekends are wacky. Also glad to hear he's been tithing there as well - give to the church that is currently blessing you. Speaker concentrated his sermon on Matt 18 - short but concise and with impact.  The dinner was really good at Texas Brazilian meatfest - a little pricey but well worth it spending that time with him and watching him enjoy it as well.  The weather last night was miserable and Denver's seen perhaps more rain in these past few days than they have seen in a month of Sundays. Glad he was driving since the roads were water logged to say the least.

Looking forward to heading back but I do treasure this week with him and want to do this as long as he's out here. We both felt it would be good for us.

Praise for today: But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. Psalm 3:3

2 Chr 28: 16-27

When one decides that his way is better than God's way, things can go from bad to worse. This was the case of Ahaz, ruler of the Judean nation. He had abandoned God and when his enemies were upon him, he bartered off the remaining wealth in the temple with Tilgath-Pilneser III (Assyria)  to help him against Aram and Israel. He didn't turn to the Lord but rather drove the wedge deeper by setting up places of idol worship to try to appease the gods of Assyria. Assyria did overcome Aram easily but that put them in a better position to conquer Israel and Judah. Ahaz was so bent on saving his own skin from what he could see that he had sketches made of the Assyrian god so that he could worship him. Little did he know that the God of his ancestors was already behind his demise due to his disobedience. Ahaz died in 715 BC and that was the same year that the Assyrians defeated the Philistines. He was buried in Jerusalem but not with his fathers due to his defiance against God. Hezekiah succeeded him on the throne.

From my FB post:

Great day yesterday. spent some good time with Daniel Ng today! After going up to Golden, Co and taking some pics of the view. Actually saw some deer come walk close to the car and us and were not afraid when I took some pics. We went to have lunch at Toby Keith's restaurant and saw "Trouble with the Curve". Walked around Bass Pro Shops and fell in love with an adopted greyhound which was so sweet! ...

We then parked at our $3 parking place and went to see the Rockies. Stopped for a beer with the intent of having dinner at this place in the park and was treated to dinner by a guy (bartender) that was an ex-MLer from Somerset and was impressed with GG and me. We connected and he insisted on treating us to dinner. Who were we to argue? Despite the rain, we stayed until the 7th inning and saw the Rockies put on a hitting exhibition. Perhaps most importantly, GG and I had a great chance to talk and share - nothing better to spend a day!

 

Today we are going to see a Colorado casino and nail a lunch buffet but before that we are heading back to Coors Field so GG can get a free ticket for tomorrow's game. Then we are going to his church for a 7 PM service and later on we'll nail that Brazilian meatfest!

 

Praise for today: I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have become your father. Psalms 2:7

 

2 Chr 28: 9-15

The Lord was displeased with the Israelites and their treatment of the Judeans. They were brutal beyond measure and thus the Lord sent Obed, the prophet to set them straight. As Israelites, they were guilty of sins committed against the Lord as well and the fact they were willing to enslave their own relatives was a cardinal sin against the Lord. Azariah, son of Johanan, Berechiah, son of Meshillemoth,  Jehizkiah, son of Shallum, and Amasa, son of Hadlai were leaders from Ephraim, who stood up to the Israelite armies and told them to not bring the "slaves" into their land. They knew already and understood that grave consequences that would follow if they housed their own as slaves. This would be a direct violation of what God decreed in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. They couldn't add to their already long list of sins that they committed against the Lord. The Israelite army left but also they left their prisoners and their plunder. The leaders from Ephraim took the prisoners in but gave them humane treatment and restored their dignity.

This was a powerful testimony of what God could do via a prophet and four people. They saw what was being done and changed the course of how these people were to be dealt with and upheld the nation albeit in a small yet powerful way. My mind seems to wander to our own nation and the resulting Civil War that ensued in the late 1800s. A nation divided can never stand let alone prosper. We were talking about the need for a national revival before our country could ever move forward. I totally agree but the roots of sin and selfishness run deep on both parties and we may never escape this funk as a nation - surviving but not thriving.

Got up yesterday before 5 AM to get to Philly airport to see GG in Denver. Was treated well with Frontier Airlines (thanks GG!) and met up with him at DIA where we saw his "office" and "desk". Got over to his place and then we went to Sams #3 for breakfast, the Coors brewery tour, checked out the mountain view on top of Golden, Co and went down to the stadium for the game. We checked out this 70s/80s arcade place near the stadium and then went in for the game. I really liked the stadium which was built in 1995. The food choices were ok but the prices were decent. The crowd was relatively sparse (they are a last place team) and reserved. Left after the 7th since it was a long day for both of us and went to our $3 parking lot (8 blocks away from the stadium) and got back at a decent hour. Today heading back to Golden to capture some camera shots, catching a movie (not at the site of the shooting) doing some Brazilian meatfest, heading to the game against the Cubbies.

I am weaning myself off of work as much as possible to spend some quality time with GG. So far, so good!!! Miss my honey and Dave!

Praise for today: For what you have done I will always praise you
in the presence of your faithful people.
And I will hope in your name,
for your name is good. Psalm 52: 9

2 Chr 28:1-8

Now it was Ahaz's turn to be king of Judah. Of the 20 kings that ruled, he was one of the weakest and cruelest of them all. He turned his back to the Lord and created metal idols to worship the god, Molech of the Ammonites and worship him he did. He also killed his sons so that they couldn't plot against him save one Hezekiah. Because of this, God gave him and the nation over to Ahaz and the Aramites. What happened was that they took things to such extremes that God had to send a prophet, Oded to chastise them and to explain what would happen to them if they didn't change their ways. Over 120,000 Judean soldiers were killed and over 200,000 of them were taken as prisoners and were abused and mistreated. They plundered Judea and took them back to Samaria.

Decent day work wise but a great weather day. Went to Philly for a business function and got home a pretty decent hour. Today, heading back to NJ and working out of Princeton tomorrow. Can't wait!!! Then the weekend and Denver!!!

Praise for today: I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16: 8

2 Chr 27:1-9

Jotham's rule started when he was 25 years old. He was loyal to the Lord and didn't follow his father in certain respects - burning the incense in the temple but also followed him in others since he did little to rid the land of idol worship. He was defensive minded and took the time to continue the fortification of the cities and the walls to defend his kingdom. Much of this was because of the alliance between Israel and Aram and their intent to destroy Judah. Jotham also waged war against Ammon since they were under his control and were looking to bolt. He did defeat them and was able to extract a tax from them over three years  to support his kingdom. He ruled a total of 16 years and was buried with his ancestors. Parallel passage was found in 2 Kings 15: 32-38. I guess his life was summarized in one verse - Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the Lord his God. (8) Not a bad way to be remembered.

Relatively decent day yesterday despite the torrential rains that came. Decided today to bag the gym and catch a ride with Joe Rodgers into work since he offered to drive to Philly for a company dinner. Still debating to go to a dinner tomorrow since I am heading to Edison that evening. I guess that will be a game time decision. Glad to hear that the home front was spared any damage with the rain.

Praise for today: But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more. Psalm 71: 14

2 Chr 26:16-23

This was an interesting situation since this was a king who's pride got in his way and chose to disobey God in a different way. He chose to usurp the responsibilities of the priests by burning the incense in the holy place of the temple. He clearly was not allowed to do so and was told so on many occasions but still chose to disobey in this respect. His anger against the priests was such that he even held the pan that burned the incense and because of that the Lord struck him with a skin disease that consumed Uzziah even until the day he died. His disease was such that he couldn't stay in the palace as was relegated to live away and Jotham was given the kingship. The prophet, Isaiah was the one that recorded his rise and demise. This was the famous chapter 6 of the prophet's book that Isaiah was sanctified towards greatness in the eyes of the Lord.

According to the commentary:

For the rest of Uzziah’s life, his son Jotham ruled on his behalf. Jotham had control of the royal palace. This was from about 751 BC until Uzziah’s death in about 738 BC.

The prophet Isaiah made a record of Uzziah’s rule. Isaiah saw a vision of God in the year that Uzziah died (Isaiah 6:1). Also, he did have visions about Judah during the rule of Uzziah (Isaiah 1:1). Maybe he wrote the record before he became a prophet. Perhaps he collected the information and he wrote the record later. When Uzziah died, they buried him near the graves of his ancestors. Because of his skin disease, they could not bury him with his ancestors. But the people gave honour to him as a good king.

 

Overall a decent day today given the return from the weekend. Got my ironing done and now just bracing for the heavy rains that are coming. Still prayers for those who are missing their loved ones and good to see Nicole off of her brace on Sunday. Finalized my Saturday plans with David as we are going to the Mets game. Looking forward to spending the day with him.

 

Praise for today: Surely God is my help; for the Lord is the one who sustains me. Psalm 54: 4

2 Chr 26: 1-15

Time marches on and so does the kingdom of Judah. Left without a king since he was abducted, Judah made  Uzziah the king who was Amaziah's son. He was 16 years old and ruled starting from 790 BC. Jeroboam III was the Israelite king for most of Uzziah's reign. He was guided by Zechariah and while he was alive Uzziah followed the Lord during that time frame. He was given success and favor during that period of his kingdom. He waged war against the Phillistines and was successful as he took major cities during his battles. He also took down some of the neighboring Arabs and had them pay taxes to him as well. He reinforced the city of Jerusalem and made gates to fortify the city as well. It seemed like he was also interested in the agriculture of the day as he built wells for their sustenance. Pretty impressive type of guy! As for the military, he created special helmets and had pretty decent armor for his troops as well as machines for offense. Still he was not completely sold out for the Lord since no real mention of his desire to take down the Asherah poles or his own faith was expressed. It seems that the parallel in 2 Kings 15:1 was  Azariah.

The weekend was extremely tiring since we did the Beantown run starting on Friday night. Going up through NJ and then cutting over the Tappan Zee was the key since we had very little traffic going up but still a 4 hour drive nonetheless. The hotel had small beds which made the evening tight but they did have a decent breakfast for a freebie. The service was nice but long and the drive to the cemetery took forever. The luncheon afterwards was nice since it wasn't in the city and they had a parking lot. We then took a sidetrip for lobster/crab rolls and then the 4 hour drive back which also wasn't bad as well. Still got back at 9:30 PM and was tired getting up for church the next day. Pretty decent day yesterday at church and got back here relatively early (6:30 PM). Prayers continue as the healing process goes on.

Finalized some of my plans for my trip to Denver next week so I am pumped about that. Looking forward to getting some cheap Mets tickets for Sat so David and I can get some FSB.

Praise for today: Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah. Psalm 68: 19