After this Ahaziah had an accident that left him seriously injured, he sent messengers to the temple of a foreign god, to ask whether he would recover or not. But the messengers were intercepted by the prophet Elijah, who chided the king for not seeking the true God of Israel, and sent back word that Ahaziah would surely die. Despite several attempts to arrest the troublesome prophet, the king does indeed die by the end of the chapter.
I wonder if the outcome would have been different if Ahaziah had placed his trust in the God who is unfailingly trustworthy, instead of seeking help from other, less dependable sources. This chapter speaks to me of the folly of seeking reassurance or guidance from anyone or anything other than the Lord.
Some sources, like medical science, do have value and can often be trusted (even though history tells us that doctors and scientists do sometimes change their opinion when new research happens in the next generation.) Other sources, like horoscopes or spiritism, are overtly evil and indeed the Bible expressly forbids us from having anything to do with them. But none of these sources are a substitute for healing from God and obeying what He shows us. Let's not fall into the trap of completely placing our trust in the wrong places.
Amidst this coronavirus crisis, we're going to be hearing all kinds of information from the media, and so far that information seems to be changing from day to day. "Wearing a mask will protect you," has already given way to, "Wearing a mask is only useful if you already have symptoms. It won't really give you any protection."
It would be foolish for us to ignore the advice of doctors and medical professionals... but it would be even more foolish for us to fail to stop and listen, and hear the advice of the God who created us and loves us beyond measure.
You've probably heard of those study Bibles that have really wide margins to allow people (probably the more artistically inclined among us) to doodle and draw as they process and apply what they are reading in the scriptures. I love this example that I saw today from someone who was reading in the book of Joshus. The word COVID has been turned into an acronym for Christ over viruses and infectious diseases, while the 19 has been applied to Joshua 1:9 - Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. That is one example of someone who took time to listen for God's perspective. Let's all do the same.
