In the first month…
There were many decisions that needed attention when coming into power as a king. Certainly, there would have been personal decisions, political decisions, military decisions and economic decisions. There was so much to do.
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.”
Luke 12:48b NASB
It makes me think of our current political culture. A new president is evaluated based on how much he or she accomplishes in the first 100 days. It’s a measurement that started with FDR when he signed a ridiculous 76 bills into law during his “First 100.”
For Hezekiah, it would be his first 30 days. What would he do? Where would he start to address all of the issues of the past? He would begin with the highest priority that would affect everything else – spiritual worship.
“In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the LORD and repaired them.”
2 Chronicles 29:3 NASB
It’s a basic but powerful message. When you are given responsibility and authority, where are your priorities? Do you try and repair the issues that plague you by focusing on everything else instead of your faith? Trust me, I have learned recently that when we obsess over fixing some issue in our life without taking it to God, it will, many times, result in heartbreak. Jesus is not just the highest priority. He is the lens through which we view our priorities. He will be faithful to direct our steps.