2 Chronicles 20

TV meteorologists are constantly exhorting us to be “weather wise,” especially if they think we’re headed for a special Weather Alert Day.  And yes, it’s no fun to need an umbrella and not have one, or to be dressed for the 70s when the predicted cold front comes barging through.

Is there such a thing as “spiritual weather”?  If so, what does it mean to be that kind of weather-wise?  That’s what we’re exploring in our Change the Atmosphere series.

We understand that the sun-rain-hot-cold kind of weather takes place in the atmosphere, the invisible layer of air that blankets the earth to a height of around 200 miles.  Is there a kind of spiritual layer that blankets our lives?

We often use the word “atmosphere” to characterize the feel or vibe of a situation: “Boy, the atmosphere in that meeting sure was frigid – and I’m not talking about the thermostat setting!”  Or “Is it just me, or was there some kind of really strange, weird vibe going on there?”

When we use this kind of language, we’re recognizing that sometimes there can be more going on in a situation than just what the people are doing – and that “more” can sometimes have a spiritual dimension to it.  Not always, not only, but still –

If we aren’t discerning the various currents than can run through any situation involving humans, if we’re not becoming spiritually weather-wise, it’s possible we can get caught in some serious storms without the proper gear.

Our opening passage for this series (2 Chronicles 20) describes such a situation.  The people of Israel are facing a sudden, unexpected “storm” in the form of enemy armies rapidly approaching with malicious intent.  King Jehoshaphat recognizes the several layers or levels to this onrushing storm.  There are the earthly details:  how many soldiers and chariots are coming at us, how many soldiers and chariots do we have?  Where are the best places for us to set up defensive operations; where the best opportunities to go on the offensive? 

But there’s more.  Israel is the people of God.  Which means that the attackers are attacking God as well as us – which means the upcoming battles have a spiritual dimension.  If we don’t read the weather wisely, we may end up battling the wrong elements in the wrong ways.

So the king recognizes that spiritual weather conditions need to be addressed spiritually.

He also recognizes that he doesn’t know how to do that in the situation he’s facing.

So he does the truly spiritual thing: he prays.  His prayer rehearses the history of God’s faithfulness and of God’s promises.  As the wind speed is rapidly picking up and the spiritual barometer dropping like a rock, that’s a good way to be anchored!

And he prays a most basic and powerful prayer: “Help, Lord!”

We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on you.

People who are spiritually weather-wise aren’t looking at the clouds, winds, and lightning.  They’re reading the weather by listening to the Lord.

Facing into some bad spiritual weather?  Aim your eyes in the right direction!