"The eyes of the Lord roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His." (2 Chron. 16.9)

Sounds inspirational, right? Did you know that the prophet who proclaimed this got thrown in jail for saying it?

When this statement was first made it was in the form of a corrective rebuke from a prophet named Hanani. It was delivered to King Asa (Judah) after Asa had relied on his own ingenuity and took matters into his own hands during a battle against King Baasha (Israel).

Asa had a strong start as a King in Judah. The beginning of his reign was marked by a time of peace and prosperity. He removed foreign altars and high places as well as tore down idols and memorial stones. Asa also commanded that the people of Judah should seek out God and obey the laws of God. (2 Chron. 14.1-4).
At one point Asa lead his armies into a battle where they were outnumbered by about 400,000 soldiers.

Before heading into battle, Asa prayed this prayer: "Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle...help us, Lord our God, for we trust in you..." (2 Chron. 14.11) God heard that prayer and responded. Asa was victorious against all odds.

Asa continued to lead the people of Judah in righteous reforms, turning them back to God. But in the midst of Asa's leadership, God sent a prophet named Azariah to warn King Asa. God, through Azariah, said; "The Lord is with you when you are with Him. And if you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you abandon Him, He will abandon you." (2 Chron. 15.2)

Asa would have done well to heed this warning, but about 36 years into his reign his dependency on God began to wane. Asa was about to go into another battle. Rather than offering another prayer to God asking for God's help, Asa spent a fortune enlisting the help of another army so that he could assure victory against King Baasha of the northern kingdom of Israel. Asa relied on his wealth and military strength. And you know what, IT WORKED! Asa won the battle, but he lost his faith.

After the battle a second prophet named Hanani confronted King Asa by saying; "You have relied [on another king] and have not relied on the Lord your God." (2 Chron. 16.7)

The Prophet Hanani then spoke this powerful rebuke; "The eyes of the Lord roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His." (2 Chron. 16.9)

King Asa was furious. He understood this as an accusation that his heart had wandered away from trust in God. Rather than repent, he imprisoned the prophet. Hanani's statement did not comfort King Asa, it confronted him - and it cost Hanani his freedom.

There's something about humanity, when things go well for us we begin to take credit for it. Our confidence grows, but our confidence is placed in ourselves and not in the Lord. Instead of remembering that God has gotten us out of tough spots in the past, we think that we've gotten ourselves out of tough spots in the past.

God sees this attitude in our hearts as His eyes "roam throughout the earth." When we choose to operate in our own strength we forfeit God's strength. For those that have already fallen into self-confidence, this is a warning, like it was to King Asa.

But to those who have not fallen into the trap of self-confidence yet, this is an invitation. If we can assure that our hearts remain completely devoted to God, we are promised His strength. Our efforts should go into protecting our hearts and directing them toward God.