Faith Across Generations (2 Kings 11:1)
Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family.
—2 Kings 11:1
What a picture of evil and sin in a family here. And what’s startling to me as I’m reading this in 2 Kings 11, and then I was reading earlier, 2 Timothy 1, when Paul’s writing to Timothy and he says, “‘I’m reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and now I’m sure dwells in you as well.'”
2 Kings 11:1 shows how our lives influence those around us.
And I’m just seeing a contrast here. So in 2 Timothy 1, you see this picture of a mother and a grandmother who poured goodness and the gospel into Timothy, and the fruit of that in Timothy’s life, which is totally different from 2 Kings 11. And it just makes me think, in all our lives, not just as mothers or grandmothers or fathers or grandfathers, but we all have an opportunity today to pass on to those around us God’s goodness and mercy and grace and the gospel, or to pass on to those around us sin and evil and all sorts of expressions of sin and evil. So let’s steward today for the good of others and our families and our church families and in the world around us.
God, help us today to steward the breath you’ve given us for the good of the people around us. God, we pray specifically in our families in light of 2 Kings 11, whether as parents with children or children with parents or siblings with one another or grandparents or aunts or uncles, just in every family relationship we have, God, help us today. And maybe even specific ways today to go out of our way to encourage, to build up someone else in our family.
2 Kings 11:1 reminds us to reflect God’s goodness and mercy.
God, we pray that by your Holy Spirit, you might prompt us even now in ways we could encourage family members today and church family members, knowing that we’ve been united in Christ with a bloodline that’s deeper than any physical family. God, help us to build up our church family today. We pray for your Spirit’s leadership in any way you’re calling us to encourage and edify another brother or sister in Christ today. Help us to be sensitive to the opportunities we have to do that right around us.
And God, we pray that you’d help us to live, to pass on goodness and mercy and the gospel to people around us today who don’t know you. God, help us to be salt and light, that people might see our lives, our deeds, in a way that reflects your character and brings you glory.
A Prayer for the Lao Lom People
God, we pray for this around the world. We pray for the spread of the gospel, goodness, and mercy of Jesus through us among generations around us and nations far from us. We pray, we intercede right now for the Lao Lom people of Thailand, for 29,000 of them, almost all of them Buddhists, most of them never having heard the goodness and mercy of Jesus. God, we intercede for them right now. We pray that the Lao Lom people of Thailand would be reached with the goodness of your grace. You would bless your church in Thailand. Bless every person working with the gospel in Thailand for the spread of your grace to the Lao Lom people.
Oh God, thank you for those who have been a demonstration of your grace and goodness and mercy in our lives. Thank you for mothers and grandmothers and fathers and grandfathers and spiritual mothers and fathers and grandparents, spiritual siblings, brothers and sisters in Christ. We pray for your blessing on all those who have built us up in you. We pray that you’d help us to build up others in you today. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
