2 Chronicles 26:5
He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God, and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.
The Cycle, Part 1:
We realize we’re weak and ignorant, so we seek strength and wisdom from God. He is always found when sought, so we get what we seek.
King Uzziah of Judah “set himself to seek God”—not a passive endeavor. He sat under a man of God who taught him proper respect for God. I know “Zechariah’s”—men and women of the Lord with great knowledge and insight. I go to them with questions; they reply with insights. God reveals himself through my Zechariah’s; may he continue to bless them.
2Ch 26:15,16
...And his fame spread far, for he was marvelously helped, till he was strong.
But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the LORD his God and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense.
The Cycle, Part 2:
The fork in the road...now we’re strong. What’s next?
Fork 1: We realize there is more to learn; we see new areas of our weakness; we grasp the goodness of dependence upon God. We continue to set ourselves to seek God. He continues to let himself be found. Go back to Part 1.
OR
Fork 2: We become satisfied and proud in our strength, and subtly begin to abandon God who got us there. We take a little too much glory for ourselves, a little less deferring of praise to the Lord. Until we end up like Uzziah—instead of listening to the wisdom of priests, he now was angered by their advice, and was struck with leprosy because of his independence and arrogance.
Lord,
If strength will make me arrogant, keep me weak. If power will make me proud, keep me frail. If achievements will make me self-satisfied, keep me broken.
2 Corinthians 12:9,10
But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
