2 Maccabees 12:24-28: a reflection

24Timotheus himself, falling in with the company of Dositheus and Sosipater, implored them with much crafty guile to let him go with his life, because he had in his power the parents of many of them and the kindred of some. “Otherwise, he said, little regard will be shown to these.” 25So when he had with many words confirmed the agreement to restore them without harm, they let him go that they might save their kindred. 26Then Judas, marching against Carnion and the temple of Atergatis, killed twenty-five thousand people. 27After he had put these to flight and destroyed them, he marched against Ephron also, a strong city, wherein were multitudes of people of all nations. Stalwart young men placed on the walls made a vigorous defense. There were great stores of war engines and darts there. 28But calling upon the Sovereign who with might shatters the strength of the enemy, they took the city into their hands, and killed as many as twenty-five thousand of those who were in it.

In his campaigns, Judas Maccabeus comes to a strong, well-defended city, filled with people and equipped with formidable defenses and war engines. It is a daunting objective. But before the assault, notice what the men do: they called upon the Sovereign who shatters the strength of the enemy, and then they took the city. Faced with a hard task, they first turned to God, invoking the Lord who breaks the enemy's strength, and only then acted.

Notice the order: prayer, then action. Confronted with a formidable challenge, the men did not simply rush into it in their own strength, nor did they shrink back in fear. They first called upon God, the Sovereign who shatters the enemy's strength, acknowledging their dependence on him, and then they moved forward. Their action was preceded and undergirded by prayer; they went into the hard task having first sought the Lord.

That is a wise pattern for the hard tasks and formidable challenges we face. The temptation is either to charge ahead in our own strength, trusting our own resources, or to be paralyzed by the size of the obstacle. The better way is the one these men modeled: first call upon God, acknowledge our dependence on him, invoke his help, and then act. Do not begin your battles in your own strength alone. Whatever hard task or daunting challenge you face, first call upon God, the Sovereign who is able where you are not, and then move forward, having sought his help. Begin with prayer, and go into the task depending on God.

Lord, facing a formidable city, Judas and his men first called upon you, the Sovereign who shatters the enemy's strength, and then acted. Teach me that order: prayer, then action. When I face a hard task or daunting challenge, keep me from charging ahead in my own strength, and from being paralyzed by the size of the obstacle. Help me first call upon you, acknowledging my dependence, invoking your help, and then to move forward depending on you. Let me begin my battles with prayer, trusting the God who is able where I am not.