“Let us build up these towns.” He said to Judah, “and put
walls around them with towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because
we have sought the Lord our God; we sought him and he has given us rest on
every side.” So they built and prospered. - 2 Chronicles 14:7
While King Asa was referring to rest from physical warfare
and the attack of opposing nations, there are many other battlefields as war
rages all around us.
This morning, in the early dawn of
a new day that comes on the heals of a late night filled with battle stories of injured heroes and their spouses, I
was drawn to this verse. The words jumped off the page as I read of first one
king who lead his people to follow God, then another who turned them away…
I’ve read these words many times,
yet this morning I see them applying to families – relationships hardened by
battle scars, PTSD, trauma, injustice, isolation, fear…
Lord, let us build up our families – nothing
and no-one can take your place as the cornerstone and shield – towers, gates
and bars – that protect us. Let us seek you and have rest on every side. Then,
let us use that time of rest to help others find refuge and rest too!
