Hezekiah's Burden In Prayers

Hezekiah's Burden In Prayers 

II Kings 19:15-19 NKJV

[15] Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: “O Lord God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. [16] Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God. [17] Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, [18] and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them. [19] Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone.” Lord

The prayers sre few verses in summary, but must have taken hours to pray. Until you listen to it in the spirit, you may miss the burden, the pain, and the nuances of this intercession. This was a real difficult prayer. It draws on the spirit and the soul. Its not that you're looking for fine language to impress the throne. Its a desperation not to be undressed.

   When you have nothing else to hold unto but God, you will understand why you could enter the prayer room and come out five hours later. If anyone ever asks you what you prayed sbout for so long, you'll have a few verses too. You can't summarize the cry of a child before the father. Nothing else matters at such moments until the pain is lifted. We've had to cry desperate prayers of this nature and God moved. All our prayers need to beike this.

    Hezekiah began by acknowledging that God is in charge. He lays a foundation for what he's about to say. He knows that God can hear a whisper, but he told God in human terms to pay attention to his needs.

Patterson and Austel describe what he was doing in these words. “As a child bringing his broken toy to his father for repair, so Hezekiah laid the issues in God’s sight for resolution.” Notice that he was satisfied, in the first letter, for the prophet to pray, but in the second letter, he went to the temple by himself. Its okay for others to intercede, but God's  interested in your prayers too.

   Hezekiah acknowledged that the King of Assyria defeated other nations including Israel because their gods were no God. Then he invited God for a showdown. Feel the invitation. Is this how deep your prayers are? If you were God, and you were busy, Hezekiah's prayers will turn your attention. How was your last cry for help? Jesus prayed a similar prayer so much that his sweat became like blood. Some medical folks said the burden was so heavy, the cappilaries began to burst into sweats. Maybe we need to burst a few cappilleries  just to breathe an air of freedom. Maybe! You can do that, cant you? Good morning.