The Unchanging God

        The Unchanging God

When I initially moved in with my son in the Pittsburgh area after my wife went to be with the Lord, I was uncomfortable driving around here because it is full of hills and valleys. Detroit area in Michigan where I lived for many years is relatively flat. Whenever I feel uneasy driving, I say to myself, “My God is not just God of the plain, but He has the hills also.” The God that is in Michigan is the same in Pennsylvania. I had to encourage myself with the story in 1 Kings 20 – how the true God is both the God of the hill and the valley. I later listened to Lynda Randle on YouTube sing God on the Mountain. Below is the first stanza:

Life is easy, when you’re up on the mountain
And you’ve got peace of mind, like you’ve never known
But things change, when you’re down in the valley
Don’t lose faith, for you’re never alone

For the God on the mountain, is still God in the valley
When things go wrong, he’ll make them right
And the God of the good times, is still God in the bad times
The God of the day, is still God in the night

In 1 Kings 20, we read how God revealed Himself by giving Israel victory over the prideful Benhadad, the king of Syria. Benhadad, with thirty-two kings helping him, attacked Israel and besieged Samaria, which was then the capital city of Israel (Northern Kingdom). He boasted that he would take the silver, gold, wives, and children of Ahab, the king of Israel, and asked him to immediately surrender them to his servants. At first, Ahab was willing to surrender to him, but Benhadad requested more things, and at these unnecessary demands, the king of Israel refused. Benhadad in his pride said, “The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.”

So, the king of Syria set a great army against Israel, but God demonstrated to His people that He is the living and true God: He sent a prophet to Ahab, king of Israel to tell him that He would deliver the Syrian army into his hand today. Israel went against the Syrians and had a great victory, just as God had said.

The interesting thing in this story is that the following year, Benhadad decided to wage another war against Israel. He had convinced himself that Israel won the first time because the battle was fought in a hilly place and Israel’s God only had strength in the hills. So, Benhadad waged war against Israel on the plain. God, willing to prove Himself again, sent a prophet who said, “Thus says the LORD: Because the Syrians have said, “The LORD is God of the hills, but He is not God of the valleys,” therefore I will deliver all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the LORD.” Just as God said, the children of Israel killed 100,000 Syrian foot soldiers in one day and had total victory.

This shows that the God of Israel is the true and living God, who speaks, reveals, and is willing to make Himself known to anyone who loves and seeks Him. He makes distinctions between those who follow Him and those who follow other gods. God said His eyes run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are loyal to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9, NKJV).

Now that the world is in a valley, a global pandemic (COVID-19), let us remember God stays the same before, during and after COVID-19. God of the good times is still God in the bad times. The Lord is God of the hills, and He is God of the valleys. Night and day, darkness and light, are all the same to Him. God’s unchanging love will see us through. He will give us victory and comfort the families that have lost loved ones. Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV). Do not fear or panic, God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).

You may be experiencing some ups and downs – no job, savings wiped out and lost a family member; you may think God has abandoned you and life is not worth living. Do not be discouraged; do not give up. His Word is always true. “Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5).