Student Devotionals
2 Chronicles 20:12
When I was thirteen years old, I got a new speedometer for my bike. So, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, I decided to go for a bike ride with the goal of seeing just how fast I could go on my bike. I took off, my eyes glued to the speedometer! I watched as the speed went from 13, to 15, to 17, then to 19.7 mph! I went faster and faster, and then, all of the sudden… I blacked out.
Next thing I knew, I woke up on the ground and looked around, wondering what had happened. My bike was mangled next to me-- handlebars bent, tire bashed in, and chain broken. What hit me? I looked over to my left. There, in front of me, wasn’t a car, or a tree, or a mailbox. No, I had biked 20 miles per hour into the back of a boat! I’ll spare you the gruesome details, but long story short, I broke my knee among other injuries and had to be put in a leg cast for four months.
All it took was a few moments to change the next several months of my life. Why did that happen? It all changed because my focus wasn’t where it should have been. If I had fixed my eyes on the road ahead instead of my speedometer, I could have avoided the accident and had a great ride. This experience taught me an important lesson: where we put our focus matters!
This is also a very biblical lesson. Check out 2 Chronicles 20 verse 12. There was a king in Judah named Jehoshaphat. One day, he was faced with an incredible problem-- his country was about to be attacked by a great army. In fact, the army was so great that it was called a vast horde!
In that moment, Jehoshaphat faced an incredible problem beyond anything he could possibly handle. He responded by fixing his focus on God. He didn’t know the outcome, but he knew the God who had brought his people through everything. He cried out, “O our God, will you not execute judgment on [this horde]? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (2 Chronicles 20:12).
God loves this kind of humble prayer in the midst of life’s overwhelming challenges. Look at the Lord’s reply to Jehoshaphat in verse 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.”
The Lord then delivered Jehoshaphat and the people not only from the armies, but blessed them incredibly beyond anything they could imagine!
This story should inspire us to imitate King Jehosphat. When we encounter problems in our lives, we should turn to prayer. When we encounter distractions that threaten to pull us away from God, we need to re-fix our eyes on him. Think back to my story. All it took was a moment of distraction to mess up the next four months of my life. I believe that this is true of our spiritual lives too. What we choose to fix our eyes on now in this season can define our next few days, weeks, months or even years! So, let me ask you this… is your focus like Jehosphat’s was, or like mine was? Is your focus on this moment? Or is your focus on the God of the universe?
Can we apply this to our own lives? We also are in a difficult situation right now. What will we choose to look to in the midst of this pandemic? Where will you and I find our peace and joy in the midst of the “stay at home” order?
Will we choose to fix our eyes on the news, which often has a message of anxiety and fear? Will we choose to consume Tik Toc or Movies or Netflix constantly and let that very entertainment consume our souls? Or will we look to the sovereign God of the universe, humbling ourselves and putting our faith in him?
Let’s acknowledge that God is not a genie in a bottle, and just because we do these things doesn’t mean that circumstances will change. At the same time, we need to realize that we are totally and completely incapable of changing the current pandemic we are in, and we need to look to God. Let’s follow King Jehosephat’s example of making prayer our first response to any problem that we face, especially in this pandemic. Whether large or small, God is our very present help in time of need.
God bless you,
Jon Cox
Illinois State Director
National School Project