“Asa became so angry with Hanani for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At that time Asa also began to oppress some of his people…Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the LORD’s help, but turned only to his physicians. So he died…he was buried in the tomb he had carved out for himself…”
2 Chronicles 16:10, 12-14 NLT
King Asa had heard the prophet’s warning—because he gave up a chance to trust God and trusted man instead, Asa would be at war the rest of his life. But evidently the biggest war Asa fought was within, and he lost. The peace God had given him for thirty-five years was gone. With anger as his dictator, Asa threw the prophet into prison and oppressed his own people. That anger not only ate away the peace in his heart, but it ate his body with disease. Asa had one last chance to trust GOD for healing, but sadly he did not. “So, he died…and he was buried in the tomb he had carved out for himself.”
Every time we give up a chance to trust God, we give another chance for the enemy to destroy us! If we are not trusting God, it’s easy to be distracted by Satan’s selfish lies, and soon we’re doing our own thing, trusting in whatever WE want. Like Asa, we become angry at whoever tries to warn us, and we run over anyone who stands in OUR way. In the quest to please ourselves, we end up oppressing those closest to us.
You may think the life you carve out for yourself will make you happy. But please beware:
One day you could discover that you carved out your own tomb!
