2 Chronicles 7:14
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
This is definitely a time for us as the body of Christ to come together in prayer. There are so many things to pray for: healing for those who have contracted COVID-19, safety for those who are vulnerable, that the spread of the virus would come to halt, for all our medical professionals on the front lines, and for the researchers who are trying to find a vaccine or medication that could lessen the symptoms. YES, let's pray together for healing from this virus and let's fall on knees before God for His intervention because only He has power over disease.
But when I look at this commonly quoted verse in 2 Chronicles, I notice a few things:
One, what is the attitude and heart of this prayer?
Two, what is it that we need to be healed of?
King Solomon, who built the temple in Jerusalem, dedicated that holy building with a prayer for God to fulfill His promises, to hear His people when they pray, to dwell with them, and to forgive their sins when they walk away from His commands (You can look at 2 Chron. 6 for the prayer). 2 Chronicles 7:14 is God's response to Solomon's prayer.
God asks us to come to Him in prayer with humility first. As I'm praying for our country and our world, I'm asking Him to heal us of this physical ailment but I also think God wants to heal us of our Self-Centeredness, our Reliance upon ourselves for everything in a world where we don't think we need God because we have Amazon, credit cards, a busy lifestyle, full grocery stores.
Actually, if we are honest, in the 21st century in the western world, most of us rarely have to ask God to meet our daily needs. Prayer has been relegated to the big things, or maybe at church gatherings, at most once a day. Do we remember God in the midst of our hectic modern lives? Could God be using this forced time at home to slow us down, to make us turn back to Him, to see the gift of His presence and His care in every moment of our days?
Solomon prayed,
"But will God really dwell on earth with men? The heavens, the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!"
2 Chronicles 6:18
I pray that God is healing us from our pride, our self-reliance, and our disinterest in God.
Are we seeking His face? How convicting it is when I realize that idolatry isn't just an Old Testament problem. We turn to all kinds of things to meet our needs and to fill the emptiness in our souls before we turn to God. Can you confess with me today that we have allowed social media/technology to overtake our lives? We've sought approval from others (how many likes we have today) and mindless scrolling to fill up our hunger for acceptance that can only come from God? Oh Lord, heal us of our wayward hearts that wander from You and seek other pleasures and comforts in this world to meet the deepest longing of our hearts instead of coming to YOU, the only One who can really fill us up. (John 10:10)
When Solomon approached God, he began with this tribute to the One true God,
"O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth-you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way."
2 Chronicles 6:14
As we seek God's face to heal our land, may we pray for revival, for people to turn from their sinful acts, to desire to follow wholeheartedly God's ways. I'm praying that God would heal broken relationships, that He would heal those who struggle with anger, that He would heal us of our addictions and our slanderous tongues, our gossiping judgmental ways and our disregard for the weakest among us.
Yes, Lord, heal our land. Heal us physically and heal us spiritually. Heal us, forgive us and bring us back to You!
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