Archive for category: GAMEtime Sharing

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 22:1-12.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 22:3-4 (NIV) 
3  He too walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother encouraged him in doing wrong. 
4  He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, as the house of Ahab had done, for after his father’s death they became his advisers, to his undoing.

On verses 1-9:  One of the big, ongoing themes of 2 Chronicles is that it matters whom you get advice from and whom you partner with.  After Jehoram king of Judah dies, his youngest son Ahaziah takes over the throne, since raiders have killed off all of Jehoram’s older sons (v1).  Like his father before him, Ahaziah is heavily influenced by Athaliah Ahaziah’s mother, “who encouraged him to act wickedly” (v3).  Ahaziah is also heavily influenced by Athaliah’s side of the family, the house of King Ahab of Israel, who “became his advisers, to his undoing” (v4).  As a result of these corrupt influences on Ahaziah’s life, we see three effects on Ahaziah.  First, Ahaziah “did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as the house of Ahab had done” (v4).  Second, Ahaziah would end up fighting battles he was never meant to fight and facing dangerous situations he was never meant to be in.  For example, due to his alliance with the house of Ahab, Ahaziah ends up:

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 20:20-37.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 20:20 (NIV) 
20  Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.”

On verse 20:  As Jehoshaphat’s men set out for the Desert of Tekoa to face their attackers early in the morning, Jehoshaphat gives his men a word of encouragement.  He encourages them to have faith in the Lord and in His prophets as their key to success.   What can we learn from this?

One of the best things you can do at the beginning of each morning as you set out for the day is to feed on the encouragement of God’s Word.  Even if you normally have your GAME time later in the day, there is great value in getting some of God’s Word – even a verse – into your mind to.
Your success goes hand in hand with how well you follow and trust God and your God-given leaders.

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 19:1-11.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 19:1-3 (NIV) 
1  When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem,
2  Jehu the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to meet him and said to the king, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Because of this, the wrath of the LORD is upon you.
3  There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.”

On verses 1-3:  Whereas King Ahab dies while trying to attack Ramoth Gilead (see the chapter before), his co-attacker Jehoshaphat King of Judah returns safely to Jerusalem (v1).  Upon returning, Jehoshaphat is confronted by Jehu the prophet, who rebukes Jehoshaphat for partnering with the idol-worshiping, prophet-murdering King Ahab in the first place, saying “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord?” (v2)  Jehoshaphat was fortunate that nothing worse happened to him when he went with Ahab to attack Ramoth Gilead.  Jehu also reassures Jehoshaphat that despite his mistake of partnering with Ahab, God still believes in Jehoshaphat and is pleased with how he rid the land of idol worship and has his heart set on seeking God (v3).

Hi GAMErs,

2 Chronicles 17:3-4 (ESV) 
3  The LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the earlier ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals, 
4  but sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to the practices of Israel.

On verses 1-4:  Jehoshaphat takes over from his father Asa as king of Judah.  Notice why the Lord was with Jehoshaphat: “because he walked in the earlier ways of his father David.  He did not seek the Baals, but sought the God of his father” (v3-4).  The fact that verse 3 mentions “the earlier ways of his father” suggests that his father was not faithful to the Lord all his life, but only in his earlier years.  Jehoshaphat had the wisdom and discernment to sift through the lives of those who came before him, learning and applying the good things he saw in them while avoiding their mistakes and bad habits.  Likewise, if you want to maximize God’s power and anointing on your life, learn and apply the good things you see from those who came before you, while at the same time consciously avoiding their mistakes or bad habits.

2 Chronicles 17:5-6 (NIV) 
5  The LORD established the kingdom under his control; and all Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so that he had great wealth and honor. 
6  His heart was devoted to the ways of the LORD; furthermore, he removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah.

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 15:1-19.

2 Chronicles 15:4 (NIV) 
4  But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.

On verses 1-19:  In this passage God sends Azariah with a message to King Asa of Judah at a time when Asa fears going to war (v1).  He reminds Asa of how God worked in the past – how there was a time in Israel’s history when the Israelites did not know God personally (v3-4). At that time there was lots of unrest and turmoil from wars and threats of war (v5-6).  But when the Israelites turned to God and sought God, they found Him and experienced Him personally (v2-6).  With this in mind, Azariah tells King Asa to be strong and to keep going with the work Asa started in removing idolatry from the land of Judah (v7).  Encouraged by Azariah’s message, Asa removes idols from the lands of Judah and Benjamin (v8).  He repairs the altar at the front of the temple (v8).  He also assembles all his people at Jerusalem for a worship service (v9-10).  At the worship service Asa and the people offer plentiful sacrifices to God (v11) and covenant to seek God together (v12-14), all with great rejoicing (v15a).   As further evidence of how committed and eager Asa’s heart was to seeking the Lord (v17), he deposes his grandmother Maacah as queen mother and burns up the Asherah pole she had erected (v16).  He also brings the silver, gold and articles of his father Abijah into the temple (v18).   As a result, Asa and the nation of Judah enjoyed ten years of peace (v19; see also 2 Chronicles 14:1).