The Citizen, 2019-07-18, Page 13THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 18, 2019. PAGE 13.
By Jason Hovius
Brussels Community Bible
Chapel
Jamaican runner Usain Bolt is
famous for two things: his speed and
his charisma. He likes to win, and he
likes to win in style. Cameras and
fans love him for his watchability
and how he seems to enjoy himself
on and off the track.
One of his most famous races was
the 100-metre sprint at the 2008
Beijing Olympics where he set a
new world record of 9.69 seconds.
Smashing a world record was
memorable, but also memorable was
how he coasted for the last 20
metres. Knowing he was in the lead,
he spread out his arms and patted his
chest before he ever reached the
finish line. Fun fact: Bolt won the
race with an untied shoe. Don’t try
this at home, kids!
Most athletes in professional
sports cannot afford to follow Bolt’s
example. For example, the other
runners in the Beijing 100 meter
final were all close enough to each
other that doing what Bolt did would
have cost them dearly. Nobody
wants to be that person who
celebrates too early, only to see a
determined and properly-focused
competitor fairly snatch the win you
thought was going to be yours.
During my limited involvement in
various sports, I have more than
once been reminded, “it’s not over
’til it’s over.”
In recent weeks, I have been
reading the biographies of the kings
(and queens) of Israel and Judah
who reigned between 1000 and 600
B.C. Most of the details are recorded
in 1 and 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles in
the Old Testament. These kings are
introduced with a short statement
that sums up Jehovah’s opinion of
them, such as “he did evil in the eyes
of the LORD”. The word “evil” is
not an exaggeration. Many of them
worshipped foreign gods and some
even sacrificed their children to
them.
On the other hand, many of
Judah’s kings started out well, but at
some point they seemed to begin
“coasting”. When faced with
difficulties in their youth, many of
them relied on God’s strength.
However, it didn’t take long for them
to forget about God’s help in the past
as new stresses cropped up. They are
commended in scripture, but usually
with an adjoining clause that
qualifies the degree to which they
obeyed God. This imperfect
obedience is described with a
statement like, “he did what was
right in the eyes of the LORD, but
not as his father (ancestor) David
had done”. More often than not, their
pride was their downfall.
Only three times in 400 years, a
good king came along and was
described by the statement, “he did
what was right in the eyes of the
LORD, just as his father (ancestor)
David had done”. Hezekiah king of
Judah was one of them. He was a
light in the middle of Israel and
Judah’s darkest years. His 29-year
reign was tucked between the reigns
of two of Judah’s worst kings ever.
Hezekiah’s father Ahaz and his son
Manasseh both participated in
unspeakable evil. Under Manasseh’s
leadership and by his example, the
people of Jerusalem “did more evil
than the nations the LORD had
destroyed before the Israelites” (2
Chron. 33:9).
Hezekiah began his reign with
repairing the temple of God that had
been neglected. The priests were
consecrated and Judah celebrated
the Passover with joy that had not
been seen since the days of Solomon
almost 300 years earlier. On a daily
basis, Hezekiah gave to the temple
from his own personal possessions
and encouraged the people to do the
same according to the measure of
their wealth.
All the good Hezekiah did early on
did not spare him from trouble. A
powerhouse named Sennacherib
king of Assyria was dominating all
the other nations on the world stage.
Kingdom after kingdom fell before
Assyria’s army, and for a while it
looked like Hezekiah and the nation
of Judah would suffer the same fate.
But unlike many of the kings before
him who faced similar
circumstances, Hezekiah prayed to
God. His prayer is recorded in 2
Kings 19:15-19. He and Jerusalem
were miraculously delivered.
If life were fair, Hezekiah would
now live happily ever after and enjoy
a long and prosperous reign. He had
followed God so faithfully and
trusted Him in everything. But
around the same time as his
deliverance from Sennacherib,
Hezekiah became sick. The Bible
says he was at the point of death. In
fact, the prophet Isaiah even gave
him a message from God that he
would not recover. Again he prayed,
and God graciously restored his
health and added another 15 years to
his life.
Hezekiah, like King David, wasn’t
perfect, but from youth to old age he
consistently trusted in Jehovah. Like
a good runner, he had a good start off
the blocks and he kept his focus
throughout the whole race.
When I was a teenager, I used to
think that the Christian life got easier
for older and wiser Christians. I
mistakenly thought that temptations
would lose their powerful sway and
that the old nature would be much
easier to suppress. It’s true that
belief in Jesus Christ saves souls
from sin’s eternal penalty. It’s also
true that God’s Spirit in the life of a
Christian helps in this fight against
the sinful nature. But this fight still
hasn’t become easy for me. New
difficulties arise that test my faith
and courage. I am realizing that
serving God wholeheartedly is still a
struggle and probably will be as long
as I live on this earth.
That doesn’t mean I can’t finish
well. Scripture is full of heroes of
faith who pressed on despite the
odds. The apostle Paul is a great
example of someone who continued
serving his Saviour even as he sat in
a Roman prison facing imminent
death, deserted by almost all his
former coworkers and friends. He
THE CATHOLIC PARISHES OF NORTH HURON AND NORTH PERTH
CORDIALLY INVITE YOU TO ATTEND HOLY MASS.
OUR SUNDAY LITURGIES ARE AS FOLLOWS:
Brussels:
St. Ambrose
Saturday
6:00 p.m.
17 Flora Street
Wingham:
Sacred Heart
Sunday
9:00 a.m.
220 Carling Terrace
Listowel:
St. Joseph’s
Sunday
11:00 a.m.
1025 Wallace Avenue N.
huronchapel.com huronchapelkids.com huronchapelyouth.com
519-526-1131 ~ 119 John’s Ave., Auburn
July 17-20 “180 CAMP” for Gr.7-12 - info & register at huronchapelyouth.com
Evangelical Missionary Church
10:30 a.m. Worship - Pastor Ernest Dow
“Mercy, Modesty, & Money Pt. 1:
‘Grace and Guidance for the Worst’”
(1Tim. 1:12-17)
Sunday July 21
MELVILLE
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
BRUSSELS
SUNDAY, JULY 21
Nursery care available
519-887-6687
Fridays 11:30 am - 1:00 pm ~ Soup & More 2
- a free community meal held in Melville’s basement, and
made possible by the Brussels churches working together.
Worship & Sunday School - 9:30 am
Coffee & Snacks following the service
We invite you to join our church family in:
Hwy. 4, Blyth www.blythcrc.ca 519-523-4743
Minister: Pastor Gary van Leeuwen
BLYTH CHRISTIAN
REFORMED CHURCH
SUNDAYS
Morning Service 10:00 am
Evening Service 7:30 pm
You’re Invited To Join Us In Worship
OFFICE: 519-523-4224
Office Hours:
Tuesday & Thursday ~ 9:30 am - 2:00 pm
blythunited@tcc.on.ca
No services during the
month of July
Accessible
Blyth United Church
Facebook: Blyth and Brussels United Churches
Youre Invited
to come worship
with us
Sunday, July 21
at 10:30 a.m.
650 Alexander St. (former Brussels Public School)
Sunday School for children
4 to 12 years of age at 9:30 a.m.
Childcare provided for infants and preschoolers
during the sermon.
Coffee & cookies after the morning service.
Summer evening service 6:00 p.m. at various homes.
For additional details please contact
Steve Klumpenhower 519.292.0965 Rick Packer 519.527.0173
The Regional Ministry of Hope
BLYTH BRUSSELS
Trinity St. John’s
9:15 am 11:15 am
COME WORSHIP WITH US!
Rev. JoAnn Todd, Rector
519-357-7781
email: revjoann@hurontel.on.ca
TheRegionalMinistryof Hope
St. Paul’s Trinity
WINGHAM 11:15 am
These Anglican Churches
Welcome You
BRUSSELS
United Church
July is our summer break
Your chance to worship with other
congregations including
Melville Presbyterian at 9:30 am
B.U.C. services resume August 4 at 11:00 am
From the Minister’s Study
Look to scripture for tales of many heroes
Continued on page 16