Happy Tuesday, Friend!
Raise your hand if you’ve ever read the whole Bible, start to finish! Just so you know, neither of my hands is in the air in response to my own question. I am, however, embarking on that journey right now. I’m following a Bible reading plan called “The Bible Recap,” which I highly recommend! But, oh man, all those kings in the Old Testament! Yikes! I’m so glad I’m not reading this with the idea that there is a test at the end because there ain’t no way I’d remember all of them! But, oh, there’s one!
The other day, I was reading . . . well, stop right here . . . A lot of times, I listen to the reading of the day. The nice man on my Bible app has a lovely voice, and I enjoy “reading” with my ears. Anyway, the other day, I heard about a certain King Uzziah.
OK, now, I have to say something about the names. Those kings had some crazy names! How could anyone possibly remember them all, or who comes first, next, etc. And then, many times in the Bible, a person will have a whole other name! For example, King Uzziah was also known as King Ahaziah. Why, I ask you? Is that really necessary? Did they do this so that they could confuse Patti Thomas thousands of years into the future? At least Uzziah and Ahaziah sound a bit similar. It wasn’t like that with everyone. Matthew, from the New Testament, was also known as Levi. What’s that all about? It’s like me introducing myself and saying, “Hi, my name is Patti, but you can just call me Susan if you’d like.” Makes no sense.
So, back to King Uzziah. He was one of the good ones. There were a lot of evil kings, but he was a good one and reigned for 52 years. Not a bad run! You should read his list of accomplishments! I mean, the guy seemed to do everything right! I won’t list them all here. You can read about him in 2 Chronicles 26 if you so desire. Suffice it to say, he “done good.” Well, right up until he realized how great he was. Then, things went south pretty quickly.
Apparently, old Uzz took a look around and thought, “You know what, I’m pretty amazing!” and that was the beginning of the end. He decided one day that he was such a great king he’d also try his hand at being a priest. He went into the temple to burn incense on the altar, never mind that that was strictly forbidden for anyone to do except for the priests. That wasn’t some rando’s rule; that was God’s rule. But King Uzz was above all that now, since he was so fabulous and all.
But, oops! While he was in the midst of hollering at the priests to mind their own business (which, in fact, they were doing), Uzz was struck with leprosy! Uh-oh, SpaghettiOs, Uzz! Now you really have to leave! The priests ushered him out, and King Uzz lived the rest of his life in a “separate house.”
Now, here’s the part that really got to me: After Uzz died, he was buried with his ancestors, and the people said about him, “He had leprosy.”
Wait a minute! That’s it?? He had leprosy??
Wasn’t this the king who tore down enemies’ cities and built up his own army? Didn’t he build towers, dig cisterns, and employ many people to work the land? Didn’t he provide his army with shields, spears, helmets, and a whole bunch of other stuff to assist them in battles? And what did people say when he died??
He had leprosy.
This made me think of how we remember people, especially after they’re gone. What if someone does good for a really long time and then messes up toward the end? Do we forget all that good and hang onto that one dumb thing they did? I know no human is perfect; we are all susceptible to making mistakes. Don’t we always want to leave a situation on a “good note”? It reminds me of playing music. You’re always taught to, at the very least, get the last note or chord right. That way, even if you hit a slew of clunkers, you can leave the musical piece on a good note and dupe the audience into thinking you just had an excellent performance.
This story made me wonder how I might be remembered someday. Lord, please don’t take me when I’m doing something really dumb and have that be what people remember about me. The secret here? Don’t do anything dumb. Ever. Oh, sure. No problem . . . said no one ever. Maybe people won’t be saying, “She had leprosy,” but I also don’t want to give anyone cause to say, “She was a hypocrite,” or “She never noticed me.”
I recently attended the funeral of a woman I knew at a former church. She died very unexpectedly and was far too young. People were invited to say a few words about her; many spoke of her kindness and generosity. A few young people, her young adult children’s friends, stood up and talked about how her home was always open to them and how she’d made them feel welcome and loved. What a lovely way to be remembered! But it was because she sewed those seeds during her lifetime. It made me want to live my life in such a way as to leave those good memories when I leave as well. So much better than “He had leprosy.”
I think King Uzz’s problem was that he relied too much on his own accomplishments. When he relied on God, God took care of him and helped him to prosper. But as soon as Uzz thought he was pretty great and could do it all his own way, that’s when the trouble started. He wasn’t remembered for his faith. He was remembered for his leprosy. Ultimately, we can’t hope to please fickle humans. The One I want to please is God Himself. But I’d also like to leave a legacy of kindness that lives on.
How about you? How would you like to be remembered someday? What can you do today to help make that happen?
Written with love – – – Patti XOXO