2 Chronicles 26:5 (ESV) — 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.
2 Chronicles 26:15b–16a (ESV) —
15 …. And his fame spread far, for he was marvelously helped, till he was
strong.
16 But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. …
NOTE: These first 16
verses of chapter 26 tell the story of a man who started out well, but he was
upended by his pride. He really was an amazing person, Uzziah. He sought the
Lord. He grew in his relationship with God. He accomplished quite a bit. He was
an innovator with the use of machines on the castle walls to repel invaders. He
restored the inventory of weapons and shields. Basically, he was a very smart
and wise person, and consequently prospered. But, he started to think too
highly of himself, his skill, his intelligence, his knowledge, and his ability.
And he started doing the wrong things. This is us -- this is me. What is the
wrong thing? Well, for me, it could be my response to a person or a question.
It could be irritability because someone doesn't understand or believe me. It
could be a haughtiness in my countenance. It could simply be my facial features
in talking to someone.
PRAYER: Lord,
protect me from my pride. It has consistently been the destroyer of my life. I
really want to be gracious to everyone. They don't have to believe me or even
follow my suggested application or idea. Nothing in life is that important
other than outright sin which can destroy the soul. Give me a gentleness and a
respect for all people in my interactions. May I, like Jesus, consider others
more important than myself.
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