Change, improvement, growth, success, and victory don’t happen because they’re admirable concepts or desirable options. No, they happen because you’re totally committed and willing to pay the price. When King Hezekiah came to the throne, Israel was in bad shape. The doors of God’s house were shut, the Law of the Lord was not being observed, and the people were worshipping the same gods as the heathen nations around them. If you’re ‘a turnaround expert’, you would benefit from studying Hezekiah’s life and his strategy. The Bible says, ‘In everything that he undertook…he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly’ (v. 21 NIV). The cost of commitment involves these: 1) A change in lifestyle. Hezekiah broke the family mould, refusing to live the way his father before him had lived. 2) Loneliness. Hezekiah was the first to turn to God. In order to do it, he had to stand alone. 3) Criticism. People don’t take kindly to change, and Hezekiah faced a barrage of harsh questions from the older generation. 4) Hard work and money. He was willing to give up time, energy, and money to reach his goal. 5) Daily discipline. Changing a culture and the mindsets of the people who are part of it can be difficult. Every day Hezekiah taught and instilled God’s principles into the minds of the people. 6) Constant pressure. The people who went along with the changes Hezekiah was making expected to see results, and they weren’t necessarily patient. But Hezekiah ‘sought his God…worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.’ The principles Hezekiah used will work for you too, so today begin to apply them.
