Hezekiah - Part 5

"CHARGE!" yelled Sennacherib, the King of Assyria.

In the heart of the city, Lachish, Judeans quivered in fear at the attack taking place. Enemy archers shot arrows over the strong walls as battering rams caused the stones to rumble and shake. It seemed the very walls that surrounded and protected them would fall at any second.

In Jerusalem, King Hezekiah wailed in despair as he sent a message to the King of Assyria.

"Dear Senna...Sennacherub, 

I have done wrong; withdraw from me. Whatever you impose on me I will bear. 

Sincerely, 

Hezekiah." 

Then, Sennacherib sent King Hezekiah a reply:

"Dear Hezekiah,

I want 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold. ASAP.

Your conqueror,

Senna...Senna...Senna-kah-reeb?"

"Seriously, Mara? How many times do I have to tell you his name is Sennacherub?" Hannah asked in frustration.

"Well how am I supposed to know? You always make me say words I don't know," Tamara complained.

"Girls, that kind of disrespect towards each other is not allowed in this house. What have I told you? Hannah, if you want Tamara to play with you, you are to teach her how to say the words in a kind manner; not reprimand her," their mother chimed in.

"Yes, mom," Hannah said. "Okay, now Mara, you get Sennacherib to keep attacking Lachish while I make Hezekiah tear apart the temple to get together all the silver and gold."

"Okay...ahem..." in a deep voice Tamara commanded, "Soldiers, keep up the good work. And, uh, Tartan, Rab-sah-rees?, and Rabsha-keeh? go pay Hezekiah a little visit. Mua-ha-ha-ha!"

Just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, the three men stood waiting for some of Hezekiah's important officials to show up. The head of the household, the secretary, and the recorder came out to negotiate.

"What could you men possibly have to say to us?" The secretary said. "We have provided your demands of gold and silver."

"Maybe you should go back to your typing, secretary, and let the real men talk out here," Tartan said mockingly.

"Ma-ra," Hannah exclaimed. "I mean, Mara, that's a different type of secretary. The secretaries in the Bible aren't like the ones in offices."

"Oh. Sorry," Tamara said. "Well, secretary! Sennacherub has a special message for you. He says, 'Who do you have left to put your trust in? Egypt is pointless and so is your God. Want to know why? Because your God told me to destroy you!'"

"Hey! Not so loud! The people in the city can hear you," the Judeans said.

"Don't you think we know that? They're SUPPOSED TO HEAR US!"

"Gi-irls," their mom warned.

Hannah and Mara giggled from the living room.

Mara began to whisper, "There's no way your God can deliver you. Sennacherub is much greater than He'll ever be. You might as well give up now."

Silence loomed.

"Well, if that's how you're going to be, we're leaving," Sennacherib's men said.

After they left, the head of the household, the secretary, and the recorder ran to Hezekiah and tore their clothes.

"Hezekiah!! We're going to DI-I-I-I-E-E-E!!!"

"Okay, girls. Mara, you need to take the trash to the curb. Hannah, you go and help her," their mom said.

"YES MA'AM!" They laughed and ran outside.

To be continued...

Hezekiah - Part 4

Taken Captive

Hannah plopped on her bed and flipped to 2 Kings 18 and began to read verses 9-12.

In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it, and at the end of three years he took it. 


Hannah sat back and tried to think about the setting. She didn't know where Samaria was or Assyria. The kings were confusing her too. She went downstairs and asked her mom about it.


Her mom showed Hannah a map of the vastness of the Assyrian empire and of Israel.

Hannah couldn't believe how much land that the King of Assyria had. Her mom pointed Hannah back to 2 Kings 17 where it spoke more of the same attack. She showed Hannah how chapters 17 and 18 correlated with one another.

In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. The king of Assyria carried the Israelites away to Assyria and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes...


"King Shalmaneser came in and fought against Israel for three years before he could fully take it over. When he finally did conquer Israel, he sent the Israelites out of their land and all the way up to the river of Gozan and Habor," her mom explained. "The Assyrians treated the Israelites as an enslaved nation."

"So, mom, if Hezekiah was a king unlike any other kings... why would God have Jerusalem conquered? Why would he send everyone away as slaves to another king?" Hannah asked.

"First off, it wasn't Hezekiah that Shalmaneser was fighting against. He was fighting against King Hoshea of Israel. Hezekiah was king of Judah. And, also, Shalmaneser conquered Samaria, not Jerusalem."

"O-oh."

"Yes, and I'll show you why Shalmaneser came against Hoshea." Hannah's mom turned to 2 Kings 18:12, "...because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. They neither listened nor obeyed."

"Okay... so King Hoshea wasn't obeying the Lord, so God caused Israel to be captured?"

"Yep, you got it," Hannah's mom reaffirmed.

"Well, what does this mean for me now? The story."

"I think this shows you that obedience to God may be harder, but it's more rewarding. He knows what is best for us. When we disobey God, consequences follow. The reason they do is because God is kind enough to care. He wants us to learn from our mistakes and go down the path that brings most growth and relationship with Him."

"If I make sure and stick by God all the time, I won't have to go through hard times?"

"Well, that's not true, just wait until you read the next part of 2 Kings 18 to find that out. However, it does mean if you stick close to God, you know He will protect you and guide you through the hard times. He will fight for you."

Hannah went back to her room and thought everything over. She couldn't wait to read the second part of 2 Kings 18.

Hezekiah - Part 3

[Hezekiah] trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him. For he held fast to the LORD. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the LORD commanded Moses. And the LORD was with him; wherever he went out, he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria and would not serve him. He struck down the Philistines as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.


Hannah sat at her desk in class and stared at the book in front of her. Right now everyone was learning math. Hannah did not like math at all. She looked up and studied her classmates around her. One girl was drawing a picture on her notebook, some of the kids were listening intently, and then she saw this boy named, Bryce, sitting beside her slowly unzipping Lydia's backpack in front of him.

He took out her pencil bag and slipped it into his bag. Hannah's eyes grew wide. What should she do? Bryce looked over to Hannah and put his finger to his lips telling her to keep quiet. She couldn't believe he had done that. Bryce was one of the most popular kids in their class. Hannah couldn't just raise her hand and tell on him. She would be the biggest loser in the class.

Slouching in her chair, Hannah thought about what she had read in her Bible that morning. Hezekiah was different from all the kings before him because he obeyed the Lord. God was with him everywhere he went. Hannah knew God was with her too, but was it her duty to make sure everyone else was following God's commandments?

She saw Lydia reach behind her to get something from her backpack. Lydia rummaged around and swept her hand from side to side in the bag. A look of confusion contorted on her face and she turned slowly back towards the front. Bryce stifled laughter and gave Hannah the shush gesture again.

When Hannah got home from school, she could not get Bryce and Lydia off her mind. She read over 2 Kings 18:5-8 again. It said that Hezekiah, "rebelled against the king of Assyria and would not serve him."

Bryce is kind of like the king of our classroom, Hannah thought to herself. I don't have to stand for his bullying. I can rebel against his authority and do what I know is right. Just like Hezekiah. I serve God, not Bryce or any of my classmates.


The next day, Hannah went up to her teacher before class started and told her what had happened. The teacher, Mrs. Shalman, took Bryce out of the classroom and walked him to the principle's office.

The principle walked Bryce back to his desk where he opened his bag and pulled out the pencil bag. He plopped it on surprised Lydia's desk and glared at Hannah. The principle guided Bryce back out of the room.

Hannah knew this wasn't over, but the look on Lydia's face as she held her pencil bag made Hannah feel  good.

Hezekiah - Part 2

Hannah hopped off the bus at school and began her walk down the hall toward her classroom. There were girls clustered around lockers showing off these colorful wristbands. Some were glittery, others multi-colored, and when the girls stretched them out, they were in the shapes of animals, fairies, dinosaurs...just about anything she could think of. It seemed as if from nowhere all the kids in her grade had acquired hundreds of these randomly-shaped rubber bands overnight.

"They're called 'silly bands,'" her friend Arleen said.

Soon, Hannah caught onto the craze. She had twenty of them up each arm and wanted more. Every time a new package of shapes came out, Hannah used her allowance money to buy them. She was gaining popularity with her classmates, too. Everyone liked to trade with her because she always had the newest shapes.

Her parents didn't approve of her infatuation with these bands, but they also wanted her to learn how to spend her money wisely. They gave their input, but in the end, it was up to her.

One day, Hannah was in her room and had all of her silly bands spread out on the floor. Tamara, her younger sister, came skipping in and wanted to play with her. She scooped up about five of the bands and began stretching them as far as they could go.

"Ma-ra!" Screamed Hannah as she snatched them out of Tamara's hand. "You're going to break them! Don't you ever touch them again! They're mine. You hear me?? Mine!"

Tamara ran out of the room, crying.

A little later, Hannah's mom knocked quietly at her bedroom door.

"Yes?" Hannah asked sulkily.

"Do you know why I'm coming in here?"

"I think so."

"Hannah, why did you treat your sister that way? You usually love playing with her."

"I know. She was going to break my silly bands, though."

"You've gotten quite carried away with those silly bands and your dad and I are very worried about you. You hardly ever snap at your sister like that. It's not like you, Hannah. And I think you realize that too. When was the last time you read your Bible? You haven't told me any cool stories you've read recently. Have you been reading?"

"Well, no. I haven't had time because I've been trying to earn more money to buy silly bands... and I like to count them... and my friends and I like to trade them. Plus, I have to make sure I keep track of when new shapes come out..."

"Hannah, silly bands can be completely harmless, you know, until you begin placing those things before God. He is zealous for time with you. He loves to listen to you and show you new things about Him. What you are doing is placing an idol in a higher position than God. My advice to you would be to put your silly bands up and pick up where you left off in your Bible."

"Yes ma'am."

Hannah's mother smiled and quietly left the room. As she began to pick up all the silly bands surrounding her, Hannah got her Bible out and flipped to where she had left off.

...David had done. [Hezekiah] removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).


"Well, I don't have a bronze serpent, but I do have some idols placed in some high places. Time to tear them down."

The next day, Hannah gave half of her silly bands to her sister and the rest she gave to her friends at school. She kept one for herself though. It was a reminder to her that many of life's pleasures are okay in small doses, as long as God remains in the high place.

Hezekiah - Part One

In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother's name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David ha--

"Hannah!"

"Yes, mom?"

"Could you come down here and give me a hand?" Hannah closed her Bible, slid off the bed, and gracefully danced down the stairs. Her mother was in the kitchen.

"What is it you need me to do?" She asked her mother.

"Would you mind helping me with dinner? I've got a great meal planned but it's going to take two chefs," her mom said playfully. Hannah hesitated. She had wanted to watch some t.v. and draw. 

He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD...Honor your father and mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you. Right. "...Sure. What're we cooking?"

"Stuffed bell peppers..." Hannah wrinkled her nose. "Don't worry, I haven't told you the rest...my green bean recipe you love, and homemade dinner rolls."

"Okay, I can handle that!"

"Great, let's get started."

Numbers 11

This is the first chapter that has really stuck out to me in a while. I've been trudging through Leviticus and Numbers trying to enjoy it...but it's been rough. Then I came to Numbers 11. There was simply too much to ponder in that one.

The title of the chapter in my Bible is "The People Complain." I'm thinking...okay, I do that. I'm a person and I complain. I'm going to learn that complaining is a bad idea and I need to refrain. I did learn this, but more so than that, I was surprised that I have absolutely no reason to whine and gripe whatsoever.

The chapter starts out with the people crying to Moses about how tired they are of eating manna day after day after day. I thought about it and agreed that I would definitely get tired of eating bread baked with oil daily. Apparently they begged and pleaded a little too much because God just started burning up the place. Puts a whole new idea to Sean Kingston's song "Fire Burning." Shorty isn't fire burning on the dance floor...God is BURNING UP the dance floor Shorty is dancing on!

So, naturally, everyone starts freaking out and Moses hears this. He gets upset himself. He goes to God and says, "Did I give birth to these people? Why am I in charge of these idiots? How am I supposed to take care of these masses?" Personally, I think he was being quite sarcastic (which I'm trying to work on not doing myself...).
Basically, Moses was complaining to God about the people complaining to him about manna and fire burning.

God, in His mercy, gathers together 70 men and designates leaders for the separate tribes of Israel. This will give Moses a break. Plus, God said he would provide meat for everyone...you know, a change in pace. This is when Moses goes, "And HOW am I supposed to do THAT?" He completely doubted the fact that God could produce such a large number of animals to hunt and eat. God told Moses he would give the people so much meat it would be coming out of their fingernails! (Actually, God said it would come out of their nostrils) They think they're sick of manna! Heh. Just wait. I, personally, think it's kind of frightening to be sarcastic and doubtful of God's power like that.

Wait...but I think I'm like that most every day. I really do. When I looked back on the manna everyone was so tired of eating, I thought to myself, Self, what does the manna stand for? I think it stands for blessing, God's protection, God's willingness to provide daily... Perhaps God blesses us so often that we begin to take it for granted. I step into my house, my manna from God, every day and cease to find it much of a blessing anymore. I hop in my car, manna from God, that still works (it may have water jiggling in the door but whatev)and don't think of it as all that big of a deal. I put. on. clothes. Daily. It's true...I really do that. And I don't think a thing about it. Okay, I think that I need new clothing.

However, when I step back, my manna is protection, transportation (the freedom to go wherever I want to go whenever), and security. God grants me those three things every single day and what do I do? I sit in my house and complain about not getting this or wanting to know more than I need to about that...I sit in my car and gripe, gripe; gripe. I put on my clothes and think about what I could be buying if I had the funds and how much better I could look.

I think that sometimes God gets tired of all our griping and actually gives us what we want. And he doesn't just do it at a small level. Oh no. He's like, you think you want a piece of this earth? I won't just give you a piece, I'll give you a whole chunk of what the world has to offer! And it makes people sick.

Look at all the screwed up celebrities who have gotten their fill of this earth. Or take a look at anyone who has had more than they need of a certain thing...whether it be food, lovers, entertainment, shallow friends, whatever. God knows exactly how much we need of everything. He loves us enough to give us a balance. Sometimes we think these balances are bad things. We want more; we have to have something different than what God has given us. Well, I'm saying be careful what you ask or complain for because God might take those daily mannas and bump you up to a level you can't handle and it will make you very ill, indeed.

Don't put God to the test. Try and find what your daily manna is that you have forgotten throughout the years. Places that God has been continuously faithful in that you have ceased to recognize. I think doing that will open your eyes to a God that is more caring than you ever imagined.

Genesis 1-4

It has always been a struggle for me to get through Genesis. I don't think I have ever been able to fully accomplish it until this past year. I'm trying for it again so we shall see what I learn from this go round.
Even before we were created, God had us in mind. He could have created the world in one day but instead chose to give us a pattern to live by. He showed us how to live a healthy life: work 6 days and rest one.
God has also designed us to desire certain things, such as, a spouse to share life with, children, purpose... Do not think that God would equip us with such desires and not give us a way to fulfill them. Unfolding our purpose in life is what brings God glory, among other things.
In Genesis 4:6-7,9 it reminds me of what Rich Mullins used to claim. He would counter Cain and say, "I will be my brother's keeper." God has called us as Christians to excellence. It is through Christ's blood that we are blameless. A goal in our lives must be to live our best through God's strength. Satan does not want this to happen so it is crucial that we fight against the lion daily who waits to pounce on us.

GENESIS 1 - AND IT WAS SO.