What Do I Do When I Don't Know What to Do?

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The Question has been running through my mind a lot this week: “What do you do when you don’t know what to do?”

Did you know there are people in the Bible who have been at that exact place??? We will learn about one of them this morning.

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Unless you have been completely media fasting the last few weeks, you know that our current society is in total chaos.

Whole communitites, cities and states in lockdown.

You nearly have to trace down your black market associates just to find a roll of toilet paper and a loaf of bread.

Senators and congress men and women are scrambling to pass something to slap a band-aid on the whole situation.

Healthcare providers are nervous that they will run out of beds, ventilators and supplies.

As a dad and husband, I can run numbers and scenarios in my mind that soon have me exasperated and panic stricken.

As I look around and see all of this I feel like Jehoshaphat in his prayer. “Neither know what to do...”

Now Jehoshaphat was a little different than we are - - he had an army that was coming at them they could see.

Moab, Ammon, others. Then he hears a “great multitude” is coming beyond the sea.

All Jehoshaphat could think of was - “We’ve Got To Pray”

Now our conflict is with things we can’t necessarily see.

Right now we have an army of:

Fear and panic - All kinds of scary statistics, ideas, misinformation, factual information, and confusion that just nearly drives anyone trying to come up “stark raving mad”.

But it is also “microscopic” we can’t see the little virus floating around. We have known way to tell if it is among us. We can’t see signs over people’s head that says, “Hey I’m carrying Covid-19”

Vice President Mike Pence must have been feeling that “hand wringing” ‘I don’t know what to do” When he recently told us Americans that we, “need to spend more time on our knees that on the internet.” (Newsweek 08/16/19)

https://www.newsweek.com/mike-pence-tells-americans-spend-more-time-your-knees-internet-1452899

Jehoshaphat models for us how we as Christians should approach this new chaos:

1. I don’t know WHAT to do - but I know WHO to go to! (I know who to trust)

See our whole hangup is not on the “what” its on the “who”

Notice how they combat fear and panic with Trust in God. “We don’t know what to do ---but our eyes are on thee” ( )

I love how earlier in this passage () it says Jehoshaphat set himself to seek the Lord… and Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord:even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD.

There is no shame in admitting our inadequacies - as long as we recognize who we are truly dependent on.

The Psalmist declared unapologetically:

“A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, From whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, Which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: He that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper: The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, Nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil: He shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in From this time forth, and even for evermore.” (, KJV 1900)

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (, KJV 1900)

iii.

I don’t know what the future holds - but I know who holds the future (and HE is holding my hand) I won’t go through anything without HIM!!!

That is what Jahaziel a prophet is saying in Don’t be afraid, don’t be dismayed if you are like me you like to know the “WHY” behind things- so you might ask - “Why not be afraid or dismayed”

The answer is quick in coming - “The battle is not yours, but God’s”

Because of this statement this conflict is often referred to as a “holy war” or “Yahweh war”.

That sounds wonderful but the prophet doesn’t stop -

You don’t even need to fight in this battle () - here is what you do:

Set yourselves (Stand firm, station yoursleves - Keep the faith).

Stand still - (Hold your positions - keep trust in GOd)

See the salvation of the Lord.

See our problem is not that we are too afraid of coronovirus - it is that we stumble in our trust in almighty God - or question what is the difference in trust and doing the responsible thing.

I’m not sure who the original author is but Scott Fowler posted something I want to share with you this morning:

I trust God...and I wear my seatbelt.

dill

I trust God...and I wear a motorcycle helmet.

I trust God...and I wear a motorcycle helmet.

I trust God...and there are enough life jackets in my boat for everyone on board.

I trust God...and there are enough life jackets in

my boat for everyone on board.

I trust God...and I use oven mitts with really hot dishes.

I trust God...and I use oven mitts with really hot

dishes.

I trust God...and I lock my house at night.

I trust God...and I lock my house at night.

I trust God...and I have smoke detectors in my house.

I trust God...and I have smoke detectors in my

I trust God...and I take my prescribed medicines.

house.

I trust God...and I take my prescribed medicines.

I trust God...and I will follow the best guidelines to remain healthy and protect my family.

I trust God...and I will follow the best guidelines

to remain healthy and protect my family.

Remember...

Remember...

Acting with caution and wisdom does not indicate a lack of trust in God.

Acting with caution and wisdom does not

indicate a lack of trust in God.

Trust is however somewhat like Spurgeon said many years ago something to the effect, “We take our money and deposit it at the bank. We don’t come back in half and hour and ask the teller to ‘show my my money’. You don’t stand there all day watching them count your money. You may have misgivings about the bank, but yet you trust them with your money. ”

With the bank you want insurance “FDIC” etc - but when we deposit our souls in the hands of God - we can say along with the Apostle Paul - “I know in whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that is he able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (2 Tim. 1:12)

Maybe I could illustrate it better with the story of the two sleepless girls from Oklahoma.

Two sisters one 11 the other 9 were so afraid of what might happen to them at night that they slept with a golf club and a baseball bat nearby. They were afraid of everything and needed constant reassurance that every safety measure possible had been taken before they went to bed each night.

A police officer, Lieutenant Paul Barbour, heard about the girls concerns. He regularly patrolled the area anyway, he would do what he could to help. On one of his patrols, he wrote a note to the girls, reassuring them that they were indeed very safe. He taped the note to the family’s front door saying he worked nights to keep people safe and help them rest in peace. He said that when he drove through their neighborhood everything looked good. and he wanted them to know.”

While you may not have a Lieutenant Barbour in your neighborhood - you have someone more powerful who has taped a note to our door - He has said - “Lo I am with you always” it says, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” He wrote in it, that he is a refuge and strength a help in time of trouble, he wrote it that WE MIGHT TRUST GOD NO MATTER WHAT!!!

2. I don’t know WHAT to do about Coronovirus - But I know Who to worship

But notice also how many times fear is combatted by worship in this passage.

As soon as the prophet quits speaking - Jehoshaphat assumes a worshipful tone -

Going from worry to worship That’s quit a transformation!!!

He bows his head with his face to the ground and all of Jerusalem fell to their knees worshipping the LORD!!! All of the worship team jumped to their feet and began to “praise the LORD GOD OF ISRAEL” with a loud voice on high!!!

One commentator says this was no doubt at the command of the king - but I don’t find that in the Bible - It tuns into an all out praise and worship service.

I want you to catch this - no arrow has been shot, no catapult fired, They are rushing to the arsenal room - they have went straight to the war room of worship!!!

Worship is among the most powerful spiritual weapons God’s people have to defeat the forces of evil. If we can learn to allow difficult situations to become reminders for us to worship God, we can defeat Satan’s use of fear and discouragement in our lives Donald C. Stamps and J. Wesley Adams, ed., Fire Bible, (Springfield, MO: Life Publishers International, 2009), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "Study Notes".

So battle time comes - Jehoshaphat doesn’t run for the champion prize fighter - nor does he run contingencies on best strategies, plans of action, or weapons...

No he chooses the best singers - puts them out on the front line - and instructs them to “Praise the beauty of holiness” and to say, “Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth forever.” ()

It wasn’t their weapons but their worship that God worked through.

I like how John Piper put it: “They ambushed the satan with song”

When in spiritual conflict - worship, sing.

In Dick Eastman’s book, The Hour That Changes the World, you may recall Mary Slosser who worked in China for many years. She used to say, “I sing the Doxology and dismiss the devil.” And Amy Carmichael said, “I believe truly that Satan cannot endure it and so slips out of the room — more or less — when there is a true song.”

January 8, 1956, Jim Elliot and four other young missionaries approached the jungle edge where the Auca Indians lived. Their last recorded act according to Elizabeth Elliot was to sing a hymn together:

We go in faith, our own great weakness feeling,    And needing more each day thy grace to know, Yet from our hearts a song of triumph pealing,    We rest on thee, and in thy name we go.

All five of them were killed that afternoon. But they, too, were protected by God — protected from a fate far worse than death. They were protected from cowardice and unbelief and fear. And I think it would be fair to say — protected with song.

Look at what happened when they trusted and worshiped:

Israel: From Conquest to Exile: A Commentary on Joshua–2 Kings V. Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. 17–20)

The victory was total, the spoils were enormous, and “the fear of God was on all … countries, when they heard that Jehovah fought against the enemies of Israel” (2 Chron. 20:29)

“And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel.” (, KJV 1900)

Again I ask the question - What do I do when I don’t know what to do???

3. I don’t know what you are going to do - But I know what I’m going to do -

I’m going to Keep holding on - keep on trusting

I’m going to worship

I would like us to close this morning by singing two songs of trust and worship.

Verse #1 of A Mighty Fortress is Our God (P. 41 Sing His Praise)

The Doxology (P. 399 Sing His Praise)