God is our greatest help in times of distress.

上帝是我们急难时最大的帮助。

Then [Hezekiah] went up to the temple of the  and spread it out before the . Kings

As a teenager, when I became overwhelmed by enormous challenges or high-stakes decisions, my mother taught me the merits of putting pen to paper to gain perspective. When I was uncertain whether to take specific classes or which job to pursue, or how to cope with the frightening realities of adulthood, I learned her habit of writing out the basic facts and the possible courses of action with their likely outcomes. After pouring my heart onto the page, I was able to step back from the problem and view it more objectively than my emotions allowed.

在青少年时期，每当我面对极大的挑战，或需做重大的决定前，母亲教我学会了藉着纸笔审慎评估的好处。当我无法决定要修读哪门科目、选择哪份工作，或不知如何处理一些成长中所面对的问题时，我就会学着像母亲一样，在纸上写下所有基本的事实，以及采取不同的作法，可能会出现的不同结果。当我把所有的想法都写下来之后，就能不受情绪影响，对问题有更客观的看法。

Just as recording my thoughts on paper offered me fresh perspective, pouring our hearts out to God in prayer helps us gain His perspective and remind us of His power. King Hezekiah did just that after receiving a daunting letter from an ominous adversary. The Assyrians threatened to destroy Jerusalem as they had many other nations. Hezekiah spread out the letter before the Lord, prayerfully calling on Him to deliver the people so that the world would recognize He “alone . . . [is] God” (2 Kings 19:19).

将思绪写在纸上，能让我对事物有新的看法。同样地，我们在祷告中向上帝倾心吐意，也有助于明白上帝的看法，并提醒我们祂的大能。希西家王收到敌军恐吓的信件之后，他也做了相同的事。当亚述人威胁说要毁灭耶路撒冷，如同他们从前消灭其他的国家一样，希西家王就将书信展开在上帝面前，诚心祷告，呼求上帝解救祂的子民，好让世人因此看见“惟独祢耶和华是上帝”（列王纪下19章19节）。

When we’re faced with a situation that brings anxiety, fear, or a deep awareness that getting through it will require more than what we have, let’s follow in Hezekiah’s footsteps and run straight to the Lord. Like him, we too can lay our problem before God and trust Him to guide our steps and calm our uneasy hearts.

当我们面对忧虑、恐惧，或者眼前状况非我们所能应付的时候，让我们学习希西家王，直接来到上帝面前。我们也可以跟他一样，向上帝陈明我们的难处，相信祂会引导我们的脚步，使我们心中的焦虑转为平安。

主啊，祢是我智慧和力量的泉源。
我相信，祢定会引导我度过危难。

2 Kings 19:9-19New International Version (NIV)

9 Now Sennacherib received a report that Tirhakah, the king of Cush,[a]was marching out to fight against him. So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah with this word: 10 “Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’ 11 Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered? 12 Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my predecessors deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Harran, Rezeph and the people of Eden who were in Tel Assar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath or the king of Arpad? Where are the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim, Hena and Ivvah?”

Hezekiah’s Prayer

14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before theLord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: “Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16 Give ear,Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God.

17 “It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these nations and their lands. 18 They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. 19 Now, Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone,Lord, are God.”

整理：于姊妹