'Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years’’. Isaiah 38:5

After the death of King Ahaz, Hezekiah (God fortifies), twenty-five years old, became king of Judah. Despite his young age, he did not follow the evil ways of his father. His first act was to reconcile God with his people. He made the saying "like father like son," lie as he was exactly the opposite of his father. That he was a prince and had accessed the royal throne only strengthened his fear of God. Hezekiah was a prayerful man, one that priced his dialog with God.

However intimate Hezekiah was with the Lord, he fell sick to death. How can the King, a friend of the Lord, fall so fatally ill without help? Why, how? At the peak of despair, the Lord sent the prophet Isaiah to inform him about the worst news of his life: his forthcoming death, thereby advising him to prepare his testament. What a shock! Many among us have experienced, are experiencing, or alas will experience such trials despite piety and intimacy with Christ. But God is and remains faithful.

What to do and what to say before such heavy and painful trials? Hezekiah, like every human being, was brought down, and his warm tears wet his bed. So what? There is a similarity between this event and the one where Prophet Nathan visited David to inform him of the imminent death of the son he had with the wife of his faithful and loyal servant Uriah (2 Sam 12:1-15). Unlike David, who pleaded his case to the prophet Nathan, the Bible teaches us that Hezekiah did not seek an intermediary but rather turned his face to the wall, came face to face with his God and pleaded his case. Moved by the heartfelt cry of his friend, God instantly instructed the same prophet to bring back to Hezekiah the revised version of the prophecy. You too, your death sentence is still quite revocable, hallelujah!

Dear readers, though we might think we don’t have Hezekiah’s integrity, the blood of Jesus has justified us. Therefore, before our challenges, through Jesus, let’s prioritize a "face to face" with our God as the very first option. Let’s be sensitive to his voice! God will speak again and you will rise up In Jesus’ name