In Crisis Counsels we have been following the story of the people of Judah in a time of great crisis, when they faced an invasion by an overwhelming army. God spoke to the people through the musician/prophet Jahaziel, who told the people to go out and confront the invaders in the Ziz wadi; and Jahaziel gave the people this counsel:

“This battle is not for you to fight; take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.”
II Chronicles 20:17

How do you suppose the people would respond to this counsel? You might imagine them saying, “You’re out of your mind, Jahaziel!” To simply march forth trusting in God could very well have seemed a foolhardy course. Yet the Scripture continues as follows:

“Then King Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. And the Levites, of the Kohathites and the Korahites, stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.”
II Chronicles 20:18-19

The people responded to the words of the prophet with worship. II Chronicles specifically mentions the Kohathites, a group of temple worship leaders, and the Korahites, a subgroup of the Kohathites, who were singers and composers of psalms. When verse 19 says that “they stood to praise the Lord with a very loud voice” it means that they were singing loudly! It is worship – the act of joining together in faith and lifting our hearts to God – that uniquely prepares us to meet a crisis. This is why worship is so very important today; and it is why we have devoted such effort to creating live-streamed worship – including singing! – for every Sunday morning. Though we must worship at a distance from one another, we can unite in spirit, like those ancient people of Judah, to meet this crisis together with the empowerment of God.

Daily Prayer: Inspire us, O God, as we lift our hearts and voices to You in faith. Share on X

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.