HOW DO YOU HANDLE STRESS AND PRESSURE?

In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the Lord —this same King Ahaz. 2 Chronicles 28:22 ESV). A number of years ago Denise and I took the Meyers Briggs Temperament Analysis Test that helps a person define the type of temperament that is part of their DNA. Basically - there are four quadrants of personalities with different levels in each quadrant. Not only did the test reveal things about us personally but it also showed us things about our marriage where we were alike, and yes, different in many ways. One of the interesting statements that was made to us was the fact that when we are living life in stress we have a tendency to go to the exact negative opposite of our positive gifts which can be harmful in life and relationships. So, it with interest that I read this statement this morning "in the time of his distress he became more faithless to The Lord." This is the story of King Ahaz who did not walk in the ways of The Lord. In fact, he did just the opposite. Look at what 2 Kings has to say about him... Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even burned his son as an offering, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree. (2 Kings 16:2-4 ESV) Ahaz took the throne at the age of 20 years old after his father Jotham passed away. Not much is said about Jotham except that he was a good man. Ahaz’s reign causes the people to lose all restraint and to become completely corrupt in idol worship. Clearly, we can say that Ahaz may know about God, but he doesn’t know him. 1. What would cause a person to close God’s temple? - v.24 Ahaz seemed to view worship as a way of getting something you wanted. Perhaps, God failed to be at his call? He seems to have become deceitful in his sin and hardened to the point that he doesn’t want to worship God and doesn’t want anyone else to either. Some people may worship for the wrong reasons: a desire for power or to be like others. Ahaz was following the example of the pagan kings around him instead of his father. One of the early church fathers known as Augustine once said, “Idolatry is worshiping anything that ought to be used, or using anything that ought to be worshiped.” 2. What would cause this same person to put an idol on every street corner? - v.24 Perhaps some would say a longing for God or a desire for meaning in life. For some this is true. Still others see it as a way of getting things. His motive is clear from v.23 “I’ll sacrifice to them so that they will help me.” We may have a hard time relating to Ahaz’s desire to worship idols, until we realize that many things can be an idol. For Israel there was the Baals. For us there is the gods of Sex, Money and Food, Pleasure, Possessions or Position. For some - it could be Football, Family, etc. The list could go on and on. During this time, Judah is referred to in Isaiah 1:21-23 as a harlot; murderer; rebellious rulers; companions of thieves; lovers of bribes; chases rewards; doesn’t defend the cause of the defenseless. God reached out to Ahaz in his early reign. We see that in Isaiah 7. God gave Ahaz a free will and allowed him to walk away from him and there were many consequences to his actions. So, what are the results of Ahaz’s actions: 1. The Lord humbles Judah v.5,19. Israel killed 120,000 soliders of Judah because they had forsaken God v.6 The Lord handed over Ahaz to the King of Aram. God took the protection he had been giving Judah away. Obed the prophet in v.9 says “The Lord God of your ancestors handed Judah over to you in his anger.” 2. The Assyrians he trusted in would turn on him. Ahaz had to bribe the king of Assyria to help him. Now, Assyria is going to act like a parasite asking for more and more tribute from Judah to keep from attacking them. They are going to rob them of their wealth. 3. He brought about a lack of restraint. v.19. His unfaithfulness led to a great moral and religious decline. There is evidence that corruption had been taking place for years, but Ahaz acclerated it. Judah never completely recovers from Ahaz’s reign of idolatry. Jesu warned against becoming a stumbling block to others. Matt 18:6-7. What do you do when your life is under pressure People have all sorts of negative things they end up doing. Like - eating the wrong stuff and too much, they drop the disciplines in their bodies, they go back to their crutches of substance abuse, they go negative in their thinking, and they go back to their bad habits. The list could go on and on. Perhaps your actions are not as drastic as that of King Ahaz but they can have the same devastating results. When David came back from one of his raids he found that his village had been burned, ramshackled and his family had been taken away. I'm sure that his stress level was at high levels. I'm not exactly how I would have responded in that situation but David's response is always a reminder of how I am to handle my life in time's of stress... And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6 ESV) May God give you grace in your life as you deal with every place of stress that comes your way.