Tuesday of Week 12 in Ordinary Time
2 Kgs 19:9-11,14-21,31-36
Mt 7:6,12-14
‘Give ear, Lord, and listen. Open your eyes, Lord, and see’
In today’s first reading, we read about the mind games played by Sennacherib, King of the Assyrians, with Hezekiah, the King of Judah. With a strong track record of exterminating her enemies, Sennacherib attempted to undermine the former’s belief and faith in God. We read of how Hezekiah brought his concerns to God and how this resulted in victory over the Assyrians, whose one hundred and eighty-five thousand men were decimated by the Lord.
It would be easy to conclude that if we lift our battles to God, He will stand for us and assure us of ultimate victory.
Easy, and yet, wrong.
The first reading talks about believers in the God of Judah fighting non-believers, so it would be easy to take that view. However, what would happen if both parties believed in God in the battle or challenge? Who would win?
I would take a light example from the movie ‘The Two Popes’, granted that this is a fictional telling of the relationship between Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. [Warning: spoilers ahead]
In the last part of the movie, we see Germany and Argentina play each other in the 2014 World Cup finals. The popes are seated together, rooting for their respective sides, and Germany beats Argentina 1-0 after an exciting match.
It would be plausible that Christians from both sides of the (football) divide would have prayed for their team’s victory. Because Germany won, would it mean the Germans prayed more fervently and faithfully? Did they fast more? Gave more donations and helped more of the downtrodden? That would be quite a stretch of the imagination, wouldn’t it?
While the Judeans enjoyed victory, this was not the intended lesson. Instead, I took away the following learnings from the reading.
Firstly, even if we believe in our God, our competitors/enemies will attempt to shake our belief through words and actions. This is especially so if our adversaries are powerful.
Secondly, in the light of possible and likely defeat, Hezekiah continued to bring his fears and concerns to God. Hezekiah did not approach his battles on his strength but, instead, depended on God. If self-dependency were the basis of his leadership, Hezekiah would likely have already felt defeated and discouraged. Instead, he brought all these up to the Lord.
What is asked of us is our dependence and trust in God, that we bring up our thoughts and concerns to Him. How many of us are already doing so? If not, can we turn more to Him? Can we pray more and depend more on Him?
(Today’s OXYGEN by Paul Wee)
Prayer: Help us Father to turn to You more, whether in victory, in distress or when facing challenges. Help us to speak more with You.
Thanksgiving: Thank You, Father, for always listening to us. We are grateful for Your love!
OXYGEN 
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