All is all only in Him . . .

²⁰ This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God.

²¹ In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered. 

2 Chronicles 31:20-21

I would like these words to be said about me.  I would like that at the end of my life it would be said that:

“Everything that Murphy did, wherever he went, was good, right and faithful to the Lord his God.  In everything that he undertook to do in service to God’s church AND in obedience to God’s law and commands, Murphy sought the Lord and worked with all of his heart.  And so Murphy prospered.”

Unfortunately everything that I have done in the places that I have been has not been good, right and faithful to the Lord.   In addition I cannot say that even in the work for the church I have always sought God’s direction and worked wholeheartedly.  And as for following all of his law and commands . . . I can not say that I have always done that in everything.

Everything is a big word.

I cannot apply that word to me.  So how can I expect to receive the result:  “And so he prospered.”

So if I am not prospering, . . . well, I guess you can see why.  It’s that little word . . . “everything.”

It almost seems rather wrong of God to require me to do “everything.”  Don’t you agree?  He knows that I cannot.  So why require me to do “everything?”  And yet He does.  Is there a key to this problem?

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart

    and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Hmm.  If I trust in Him, and do not trust in myself, in my own understanding AND if I submit all that I do, myself completely to Him THEN he will make my path straight.  God will do through me what is good and right and faithful to Him.  God will make my actions conform to His word!  Awesome! Right?

Well, if you are like me you must have noticed that word “all” scattered all through Proverbs 3:5-6.  It sounds a lot like the word “everything.”  It does because it is.

The standard that God sets is too high for anyone to reach, but one.  Christ.  As we come to Him and allow Him to work through us; as we strive to relax in His word, well then He steps in.  He not only steps in to empower us to do His will, but He actually does it through us.  And where we fail, He forgives us, He makes us clean.  So when the Father sees us, God sees “everything” is done.

I don’t know if you understood what is really being said here as to” “And so he prospered.”  What I am saying is that the prosperity that we experience is directly related to the forgiveness of God, of His grace given freely to us.  We do not earn any blessing; He gives it as He chooses, as we trust in Him.  See our perfection is tied directly to Him.  We have done “everything” because He has done “everything.”  

As Paul wrote:

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

Ok, I know this has been a little rough today.  Just know that our prosperity is only the result of Christ having done everything in and through us as I we have given our lives to Him. It is only in Him that God sees us having done “everything.”

Got it?

Got Word?

Love yah,