For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. 2 Chronicles 16:9a NASB
What an incredible thought, God is searching all throughout the earth, looking for people who will give their heart to Him. Why? So He can show them strong support! These words were spoken to King Asa. Unfortunately, they were followed by this statement:
You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars. 2 Chronicles 16:9b NASB
King Asa was a man who had indeed committed his heart to the Lord and had already experienced His strong support. He had been up against what he referred to as a “vast army,” one against which he felt powerless. He had no hope apart from the Lord, but He had already committed his life to God and he trusted that God was able and willing to take care of His own. This statement was part of his prayer before he went into battle:
Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; so help us, O Lord our God, for we trust in You. 2 Chronicles 14:11b NASB
Have you ever been in a battle in which you knew you were no match for the enemy? When it comes to spiritual warfare, we’re never a match for the enemy or his schemes to destroy us! But, as John tells us in 1 John 4:4, “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.“
God is always stronger than the enemies we face! Victory is ours when we rely on Him. King Asa somehow lost sight of that. If we’re not careful, we can lose sight of that too. But God never stopped loving Asa, and He never gave up on him. In mercy, He confronted him with the truth. Asa still had the opportunity to have the full support of God, but He needed to humble himself and cry out to God for help. Instead, Asa dug his feet in and refused to seek help from God.
In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa became diseased in his feet. His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians. 2 Chronicles 16:12 NASB
Asa’s story is a sad one. His pride kept him from calling out to God, and he missed out on receiving all that God had planned for him. But his story doesn’t have to be our story. God is searching throughout the earth, looking to support those who’s hearts are completely His. Will you humble yourself and call out to God? Will you commit your heart completely to Him? Do you want His strong support?