“…And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, only not as the kings of Israel who were before him (17:2)… the king of Assyria invaded the whole land and went up to Samaria and besieged it three years (17:5)… king of Babylon came, he and all his army against Jerusalem, camped against it and built a siege wall all around it (25:1)… and he burned the house of the Lord, the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem (25:9)…”

These verses cover 732 B.C. to 561 B.C., a period of approximately 200 years which saw many kings and the destruction of the Southern Kingdom, Judah (Jerusalem) and the Northern
Kingdom, Israel (Samaria). Again and again the people of Israel sin, are punished, then go back to following God’s way. Is this not our story as well? We will call for God’s help when
we feel low but forget Him as quickly as we recover. We worship our modern idols – money, achievement, fame – forgetting the One who made our accomplishments possible, the One
who delivers us as He delivered the Hebrews from Pharaoh.

DEAR GOD, KEEP US MINDFUL THAT ALL GOOD THINGS FLOW FROM YOUR HAND. YOU ARE THE SOURCE OF ALL GOOD. HELP US THANK YOU DAILY FOR THE MANY BLESSINGS YOU BESTOW ON US AND TO REMAIN STEADFAST IN OUR FOCUS ON YOUR WILL AND DIRECTION FOR OUR LIVES. I ASK THIS IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST, MY LORD AND SAVIOR. AMEN.

– Shared by Clinton Fox