2 Chronicles 34:3 "For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images."
What were some of the things on my mind when I was 8 years old? I certainly was in no position to rule a country. Yet would it have been said of me that 'while I was yet young, I began to seek after God'? The past is the past and cannot be changed. This is a challenge to me now, wherever I may be in my spiritual walk, to realize that complete commitment to seeking the Lord starts now.
It is also encouraging to see Josiah's progression in his relationship with God. He begins seeking God, then 4 years later that commitment to God spills over into purging Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, etc. Then 6 years later we see Josiah begin repairing God's house. Each milestone was a step along his spiritual journey. We should never expect to go from 0 to spiritual immediately. God knows our fallen state and our wicked hearts, yet He loves a heart that is dedicated to sincerely press on regardless of stumbles along the way.
No matter how old I am, or how far along I am in my spiritual journey, can I let the story of Josiah inspire me to seek God more? Can I let it inspire me to purge the sin from my own life? And finally, can I let it encourage me to build up the things of God within me?
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