CHRONICLES OF LIFE

Be strong and courageous, 

do not fear or be dismayed because of the

king of Assyria nor because of all the

horde that is with him;

for the one with us is greater than

the one with him.

With him is only an arm of flesh,

but with us is the Lord our God to

help us and to fight our battles.”

And the people relied on the words

of Hezekiah king of Judah.

II Chronicles 32:7-8

Let it be known that I am not a Bible scholar. If I am not, it is totally my own fault. I personally believe any Christian with serious intent can know the Scriptures as well as any seminary professor. However, I've been in the process of reading through my Bible this year and like any normal, red-blooded Christian, I left the Kings and Chronicles until last. By the time I got to the two Chronicle books, I earnestly prayed God would really show me some things I hadn't taken notice of in the past or had deliberately ignored. Told you already I'm normal although I have friends and family who would question that statement.

This happens to be the time of a new year approaching that I am really trying to find a verse or two that are words of encouragement I can return to in times of difficulty. Little did I believe I would find just such a treasure as I was nearing the end of II Chronicles but there they were and you can read them. I realize King Hezekiah was speaking to his people in the face of an oncoming enemy army, but as I read those two verses, I thought of times I felt Satan's onslaught of evil on my life. In those times I've been as scared and concerned as the folks in Judah of that day. What Hezekiah had to say to his people though, are just as on target for us and in in our own day. We have an enemy who has declared war on us, especially if we are doing all we can in Holy Spirit power to live out our faith pleasing to our Lord.

What is a chronicle? I read that a chronicle is a record of events that happened in the past that is written in chronilogical order. In the Greek, chronicles are defined as “annals of time.”

Both I and II Chronicles concludes the history-oriented books of the Old Testament. Many Christians, including me, shy away from these books that seem to be so repetitive in content. The thing that contributes to some of the repetitiveness of Chronicles especially is a familiar statement found periodically in both books. Such statements tell the reader to refer back to the books of the Kings.

Often, I've suggested to ladies I've taught to still read often in the Old Testament...it isn't outdated or and is applicable in content to our living. The Old Testament gives us information regarding God's character along with so many principles of good and godly living. Just in reading through the Chronicles, I found some principles that stood out to me in large print letters, some of which are:

*God hates sin and will always deal with it.

*There isn't any such thing as “little sins.”

*It makes no difference our standing in life, God will still deal with our sin.

*God blesses the obedient life.

*God is greater than than anything Satan can dish out.

*God will help us fight our battles...we're never left alone.

Now that was just a few things from the Chronicles I noticed but sure there are more. Here's what dawned on me. You and I are in the process of writing our own chronicles, the events of our lives that children, grandchildren and perhaps friends, will look back on after we are gone. We may not put anything in print although it would probably be good if we did, but there are people who read our lives all the time. Hopefully when people look back on our life chronicles, they will be blessed and encouraged.

Father, I thank You that every word in Your Word is important. You've provided so many nuggets from Your character for us. Empower us to walk in obedience to your Word and ways. Help us to learn from the mistakes made by people we read of in Your Word. Thank You for never leaving us alone and for loving us despite our weaknesses. We love you. In Jesus' precious name...Amen