OCTOBER 26

2 Kings 22:1, 2; 23:1-3

                     8 YEAR OLD KING JOSIAH

Josiah became king of Judah when he was only eight years old. His father Amon lived a wicked life. But Josiah was different – he “did that which was right in the sight of the Lord.”

Though he was king he was humble and followed the teachings of the high priest Hilkiah. As he grew up, he continued to seek after God. He repaired the temple of God. He sent men to break down the altars of the idols (false gods). When a copy of the law of God was found, he caused it to be read to all the people.

Dear child, sometimes you may find the environment you live in not conducive for godly living. Perhaps your parents are not Christians? Or they may go to church but don’t really live a godly life at home? Are your parents quarrelling often? Or parents working too hard and not spending enough time with you?

Perhaps in school you have classmates who may be naughty and try to teach you to disobey parents, tease other children, or not complete homework. The list goes on. You must be strong enough to tell them you’d rather obey the Word of God than the word of these children!

Sometimes you and I may be discouraged by what is happening around us. Let us be strong and follow the wonderful example of Josiah – that though he had such a terrible sinner as his father, he decided to be a good follower of God. You and I can too! Some children may blame others for their wrongful behavior. They may claim they don’t have good examples to follow and thus give the excuse that with no good example, they cannot but turn bad. Is that true? Of course not! There are so many examples to follow in the bible! And Joash is just one of them!

In conclusion, may we be the good example others could look to. Even if there are no good examples for us, let us look to the godly examples God gave us in the bible, then the evil examples Satan places in the world to tempt and trouble us.

Thought: Am I a good example?
Prayer: Heavenly Father, guide me to not look at and follow negative examples but to read the bible and follow the positive examples there. Help me to be a serious student of the bible and to grow in faith and knowledge.
This is my earnest cry – in Jesus’ name - Amen.