“Hezekiah did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight…He removed the pagan shrines, smashed the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles…Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before or after his time…He remained faithful to the Lord in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands of the Lord…So the Lord was with him, and Hezekiah was successful in everything he did.”
2 Kings 18:3-7 NLT
I would love to be like Hezekiah, successful in everything I do! In fact, there was no one like him in ALL the kings of Judah—those kings who did not remove Solomon’s pagan shrines for two hundred years! But King Hezekiah was different.
First, Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, not himself! Because he trusted God, he was able to obey His commands. Hezekiah remained faithful to the Lord in everything and proved it by removing all the pagan shrines his predecessors left, smashing sacred pillars, and cutting down Asherah poles. When it came to relationship with God, Hezekiah proved he was all-in!
Hezekiah’s actions were pleasing in the Lord’s sight, and that’s why we read these powerful words in his story— so, the Lord was with him. It was the power of that relationship that made Hezekiah “successful in everything he did.”
I notice a beautiful parallel in this passage—Hezekiah was faithful to the Lord in everything, and successful in everything. But those two “everythings” were connected by relationship. Like any parent, God wants His children to be successful, and HE will always be faithful to make that happen. It’s up to me to remain faithful to HIM!
Faithful in everything—successful in everything—that’s the power of RELATIONSHIP!
