When someone I love is going through difficult, challenging times, it doesn’t take long for me to feel unmoored. I worry, I fret. When I pray I begin to feel that in all of my need I’m using God…please do this, do that, do this. Do you ever go through that? This morning He showed me sitting in the ruins of a collapsed cardboard box. I could see myself sitting there cross-legged with the sides of the box collapsed around me. He told me I have built a box of cardboard to surround me and be my protection and from inside that box I feel secure and wonder why no one else wants to join me in that box of protection. They have their own box. And when trouble comes as it always will the walls collapse. He told me He is not my box’s walls to protect me from all harm. Stop sitting in the ruins of that box. Take His hand…He is with me to protect me through and in the storms I fear. He is in the midst with me always. When I am unsure, look and He is here with me. Here with Him, I find peace to go on.

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ, our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:3-7.

And now in this final chapter of 1 Kings 22, Ahab, king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, have joined forces to be rid of the king of Aram. Surrounding them are 400 prophets of Israel telling them exactly what they want to hear. Jehoshaphat asks Ahab, “Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here whom we can inquire of?” v. 7. Ahab tells him there is one but he always prophesies bad things. So Micaiah son of Imlah was brought before the two kings.

The messenger sent to get Micaiah tells him, “Look, the other prophets without exception are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favorably.” v. 13. Micaiah orients the messenger to the truth of true prophets. “As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what the Lord tells me.” v. 14.

You can almost picture the scene. At first Micaiah tells the kings exactly what they want to hear and yet Ahab says wait…he knows there’s more. There is God’s truth. Micaiah tells a story about God in heaven surrounded by the multitudes of heaven and one spirit goes before God to tell him, “I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.” v. 22. God doesn’t entice anyone to evil. He has given us all a choice. We live in those choices and God is able to work good out of those choices according to His will which we cannot fathom completely. Why can’t we fathom it? Because all people are living in the midst of the choices they make and then we sit in our “boxes” thinking God will support and protect our choices. Ahab and Jehoshaphat wanted to go to war against the king of Aram. So what was the truth they heard? “So now the Lord has put a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster for you.” v. 23.

Ahab determines to hide himself by entering into battle in disguise while Jehoshaphat wears royal robes and he thinks that will keep him safe. I can’t help but wonder how Jehoshaphat felt about that suggestion! At random, an arrow from someone’s bow hits Ahab between sections of his armor and he ends up dying in his chariot. Ahab’s rule ends just as God told him it would. The chapter and book ends telling that Jehoshaphat dies in his time and both kings are succeeded by their sons.

Step by step in faith we can choose to be led by God out of boxes we construct to protect us that fail us when true problems come. God doesn’t sugar-coat anything. He tells us the truth. I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33. Just as He promised we will have trouble in this world, He promises us His peace. Step by step with Him. He overcame the world by the Cross and I believe Him.