He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD
Kings in the history of Israel & Judah are evaluated regularly with a phrase such as this: “And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father.” This is the summary of the life of Josiah, found in 2 Chronicles 34:2 (ESV). Reading through the books of I & II Kings, and I & II Chronicles you will find this constant appraisal of the kings. Many did what was evil, some did what was good and they are often compared to King David or to their own immediate father – whether good or evil.
If the history of these kings were placed on a simple chart with a curved line representing their good & evil actions we would see a wave formation with many dips below the x-axis and some above. What would be fascinating would be to overlay a similar chart showing the fortunes of the people of Israel & Judah.
It struck me as I was reading that these curves would be very similar. The actions of the leader have a direct bearing on the spiritual health of the people of God.
This is a sobering thought for leaders. We may choose to point to all sorts of factors to explain the growth, lack of growth or decline of our ministries. However one cannot help wondering if their condition is actually a reflection of our own obedience or disobedience.
May God bless us with a heart of flesh to replace our cold, hard heart of stone and with the Holy Spirit to guide us into obedience (Ezekiel 36:26-27).
Hi, my name is Chris Cullen. I'm the Pastor at Kurrajong Baptist Church. During 2010 I'm encouraging you to read the whole Bible. This blog contains my reflections through this process. 
