Week 5: The Power of Prayer

Scripture: 2 Kings 20:1-6

In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.” Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord: “Remember now, O Lord, I implore you, how I have walked before you in faithfulness with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” Hezekiah wept bitterly. Before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: “Turn back, and say to Hezekiah prince of my people, Thus says the Lord, the God of your ancestor David: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; indeed, I will heal you; on the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David’s sake.”

The Power of Prayer

            This past week, I was asked a question that caused me to do much reflection. The question was: How would you define trauma? This question, to some, would seem like a relatively simple question. The reality is that for me it wasn’t. I somehow formulated an answer that was similar to this: a momentary situation that causes a life altering event. Trauma causes us to focus our lenses clearer on the things that are more important in life. Trauma for some could be a sudden diagnosis of cancer. Or, trauma could be the sudden death of a loved one. Whatever trauma is, it is not subject to a specific demographic. You can be blessed from the bedroom to the bank account and experience trauma. You can have more bills than you have money and experience trauma. You could be too blessed to be stressed and experienced trauma. You can be too stressed to be blessed and experienced trauma. And though nobody wants to, everyone can experience trauma. No one wants to experience trauma because trauma causes you to live life in a new way. When people experience trauma, as a coping mechanism, they try to do something productive to help them deal with their new reality. In these events, it has become common practice for people to use prayer as a lifeboat in the midst of situations that they are going through. These sudden episodes of religiosity, sourced in trauma, disclose to us that we are not in a real relationship with God.

            Hezekiah became a king at the young age of 25. Hezekiah’s name means that the Lord will strengthen and he experienced much that the Lord would have to strengthen him through. Even throughout the different events, at the end of his life the Bible describes him in 2^nd Chronicles chapter 29 as one who “did what was right in the sight of the Lord”. Hezekiah was a good King and was in good relationship with the Lord. But this text discloses to us that Hezekiah finds himself in a bit of a traumatic experience. He finds himself sick, to the point of death. We’re not just talking a common cold or a sinus infection, we are talking about an illness that brought him to the point of death. Though the text doesn’t disclose what illness he has contracted, I have decided to investigate it a little further. According to the Mayo Clinic, there are two types of illnesses, which are known as either diseases or disorders. In both types of illnesses, there are two ways to contract them. One of these is contracted by genetic or a hereditary abnormality; meaning that in order to contract these illnesses you most likely would have to be related to someone who had these illnesses. These are diseases like hypertension, diabetes or even some types of cancers. Examples of disorders that are typically found in a hereditary abnormality are down syndrome or cystic fibrosis. The other type of illness can be contracted by coming in contact with some type of bacteria. Examples of these other cells are the Bubonic plague, Lyme’s disease, pneumonia, tetanus, or cholera.

            No matter what the illness is, the carrier must either contract it from someone or something else; or have the illness lying dormant in them, by way of their genealogy, waiting for a moment to be exposed. All that is to say, that King Hezekiah’s illness came from him being connected and in contact with people who were sick. How many times have you gotten sick because of the people who you are connected to? I’m not talking about the flu, but rather the Fake and Phony Christian’s Disease, or I Only Pray on Sunday Disorder, or maybe the I Complain More Than I Do Plague. Which one have you come into contact with? Though these may not seem like these are realistic medical disease, the reality is that these illnesses are causing the Christian community some life-threatening challenges. The church, and Christian community are sick with Hezekiah’s Illness and although the Bible does not investigate how King Hezekiah contracted his illness, based off of scriptural references I will try to find out how he contracted in myself.

King Hezekiah has a family history of the figurative disorder known as Bad King-a-titis. Bad King-a-titis is a disorder, typically passed down as a Hereditary trait, causes the Kings of the Empire to serve their own ego by either following in the footsteps of the Kings of Israel or deliberately doing evil in the sight of the Lord. People who have suffered from this disorder are:

·         King Ahaz, who walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab did.

·         King Ahab, who married and followed his Wicked Wife Jezebel.

·         King Asa, who used the silver and gold of the House of the Lord to create a covenant with another king.

·         King Jehoram, who also walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab did 

·         King Joash, who walked in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada, but shifted his affections after Jehoiada’s death.

·         King Ahaziah, who did evil in the sight of the Lord.

·         King Trump, who does what is right in his own eyes, without the acknowledgement of the majority of the country.

But unlike them, Hezekiah is not suffering from Bad King-a-titis. He was bestowed a high honor that only three other kings had ever received. He, alongside King Jotham, King Uzziah, and King Amaziah did what was right in the sight of the Lord. This causes me to consider some of the other disorders that maybe he contracted from being connected to the wrong people. Though it is truly impossible to diagnose, knowing the type of illness the King contracted would allow us to peek into the severity of his condition. The only thing we truly know about this illness is that it had the capacity to kill him. And while he is suffering from the effects of this illness, he receives a visit from the Prophet Isaiah.

Typically, a visit from someone while you’re sick would entail some sense of encouraging messages. Something along the lines of “Get Well Soon”. But this is not the case when Isaiah comes to visit. Isaiah comes to tell him to get his affairs in order because he is going to die. Though the illness may have felt severe to Hezekiah prior to this, hearing that he would surely die Should’ve caused his countenance to fall even further, but he resolved to turn to the wall to pray. Hezekiah had the golden opportunity to write Judah’s Bestselling Lament, but rather he says Remember now, O Lord. He asked that God remembers him and how faithful he had been throughout both his life and his reign. Unlike Hezekiah, some of us want God to forget certain sections of our life and simply to judge us based upon our new selves. This calls us to give God something worth remembering of us throughout our lives. This call to remembering the character of Hezekiah would call to the forefront and remind us that he did what was right in the sight of the Lord. He made his petition to the Lord because if God could remember his faithfulness, surely God would be more likely to extend his life. But this bears a question. When does God forget?

·         God didn’t forget to tell Noah to build the ark

·         God didn’t forget to tell Sarah that she would bear a son

·         God didn’t forget to part the Red Sea for the Israelites to walk on Dry Land

·         God didn’t forget to keep the sun up long enough for Israel to win the battle

·         God didn’t forget to show up for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in a fiery furnace

·         God didn’t forget to deliver Daniel from the Lion’s den

·         God didn’t forget to use a Fish to get Jonah’s attention

·         God didn’t forget to cause you to be carried in your mother’s womb

·         God didn’t forget to give you experiences that would shape you into the person who you are now

·         God didn’t forget to show us God’s love by sending Jesus to die on the cross, for the pardon of our sins.

God didn’t forget Hezekiah, but it seemed that Hezekiah forgot about the power of God that is accessible through prayer. Hezekiah remembered that there was power through prayer. Hezekiah had been in some life-threatening situations that only a relationship of prayer would’ve been able to deliver him out of. 2 Kings 19 dictates that this is not the Hezekiah’s first time praying. He prayed on behalf of the nation, that they would be delivered out of the hands of the Assyrians and God heard and answered his prayer. This was the same God who had delivered him before, and surely no matter the circumstance God could deliver him again. The power of prayer in this story was not the actual petition because those words didn’t mean much; but rather the fact that he did pray. It is often, not important what (Content) you pray, but rather the fact that (Action) you pray! He was faced with a death sentence and he didn’t use this time to compose Judah’s Bestselling Lament, but rather turns to the wall and asks God to remember. This is because he remembers that throughout his life he has been faithful to God, and if he would’ve examined a bit further; Hezekiah would’ve realized that God had also been faithful to him.

The reality of the situation is that Hezekiah had not been forgotten by God, even though he is under the impression that he was. But even in the midst of that God didn’t forget about him at all. The reality is that God regarded Hezekiah enough to inform him that the end was near. It is like hearing the doctors say “we have done all that we can” or “there is nothing else we can do”. There is an overwhelming feeling that gives you a taste of their fate. It causes tears in the eyes of loved ones and in this case even the one who is ill. The text doesn’t say that Hezekiah simply cried, rather it suggests he wept bitterly. Weeping Bitterly suggest a moment of severe Heartbreak or Anguish. He couldn’t believe that his life would end in this manner after spending his entire life serving the Lord. Surely the Lord would remember all that he had done throughout his tenure as king. The ways in which he served God to the best of his knowledge and ability.

Why we have highlighted on the remembering of the character of Hezekiah, this text also shows a highlight on the character of God. God sent Isaiah to give the death sentence to Hezekiah and before Isaiah could get too far away from Hezekiah, Hezekiah begins praying. The text would suggest to us that the moment that Hezekiah begins praying, that God spoke to Isaiah. This may not seem meaningful to you because God doesn’t speak directly to Hezekiah, who is speaking to God at the moment. God uses the same person who brought the initial message, to bring the amendment. Hezekiah asked for God to remember him, but instead of God, remembering Hezekiah, God gave him more than what he asked for. His asking for remembrance was a tactic to be healed, but God had a greater plan. God decided to heal him, deliver him, set him in the nation free, and add 15 years to his life. He received all of these added things by simply being in connection with God through prayer. Because it is not what to pray it is that you pray. Hezekiah was only asking God to remember him, so that he could be healed. Hezekiah received far greater than the Healing that he was asking God for. As modern-day Kings and Queens, with Hezekiah kinds of adversity, I don’t know what you want God to do but I dare to use the power of prayer. Even when it seems like God is not answering, or even listening; I guarantee you that God still hears and answers prayers. So I stand with the Hymnwriter and say:

Sweet hour of prayer

Sweet hour of prayer

That calls me from a world of care

And bids me at my Father's throne

Make all my wants and wishes known

In seasons of distress and grief

My soul has often found relief

And oft escaped the tempter's snare

By Thy return, sweet hour of prayer