(by pastor Jean)

When Jehoshaphat was in grave danger facing a huge army, he turned to God for help and said, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You” (2 Chron 20:12; NIV). Jehoshaphat was not putting his trust in his own ability or even his own army but he was trusting God completely. Needless to say, God came through for him, gave him a plan and victory. It’s the same for us, if we make it a habit to seek the lord He will come through for us too. We not only need to do this when facing opposition but when things are going smoothly too. When things are going well it’s tempting to think we can manage without God and don’t need to pray about things. Sadly, this was the case with King Uzziah (2 Chronicles chapter 26). We are told that when he first became King, he sought the Lord, “As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success” (2 Chron 26:5; NIV). We are told he became powerful and did a lot of good things and had a strong army. However, “But when he had become powerful, he also became proud, which led to his downfall” (2 Chron 26:16; NLT). Uzziah began by leaning on the Lord for help but as he became more and more successful, he felt he could manage without God’s help but this led to his demise. He decided to burn incense in the temple which only the priests were allowed to do and God struck him with leprosy for the rest of his life. Let’s always remember to pray and ask God for help, even in the little things; when facing storms and also when the water is calm. “I will lift up my eyes to the hills – from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord” (Ps 121:1,2; NKJV).