In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:
“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them. And in any locality where survivors may now be living, the people are to provide them with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’” Ezra 1:1-4
Solomon’s proverb says that the Lord moves the heart of the king like a watercourse (a sprinkler) Proverbs 21:1. In other words, God moves it wherever he wants to water. That’s what happened with God’s people under the rule of Cyrus the Persian king. The result was the beginning of the return to the holy lands for the exiles. All of this was in preparation for the coming of Jesus Christ. God really is involved in the affairs of men, especially in keeping His promises.
How pliable is my heart? God has given me responsibility in some areas of leadership. Am I attentive to His leading or do I rely on my own understanding?
God, thank you that we can pray for our leaders knowing that if they are attentive to You, our prayers could actually influence them to do good or choose rightly. Lord would you touch the heart and move our leaders in our country to Your ways and not theirs. Likewise, I pray you give great wisdom to local leaders in civic service. And most importantly, would you speak to the pastors in Corona and let them teach and preach with confidence the gospel of Jesus Christ with all clarity and conviction.
