“And Jehoshaphat said … ‘O our God, will you not judge them, for there is no power in us before this great multitude that is coming against us. Now we do not know what we shall do, for our eyes are upon you.’ …  Then the Spirit of Yahweh came upon Jahaziel … And he said, … ‘There will be no need for you to fight in this battle. Take your stand! Stand and see the deliverance of Yahweh among you … Do not fear … ‘” ~ 2 Chronicles 20:6,12,14,15,17

“But Josiah did not turn his face from him, but he disguised himself to fight with him. He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God, and he went out to fight in the plain of Megiddo. And the archers shot king Josiah, and the king said to his servants, ‘Take me away, for I am badly wounded.’” ~ 2 Chronicles 35:22-23

King 1:

In 2 Chronicles 20, a vast army of Moabites, Ammonites, and Meunites gather together to make war with King Jehoshaphat of Judah.  He is no match for them.  

King 2:

In 2 Chronicles 35, King Josiah of Judah picks a fight with Pharaoh Neco of Egypt, who is en route to Carchemish to engage the Assyrians in war. 

Neco tells Josiah that he is no way opposed to Josiah and to steer clear. In fact, Neco claims that he has a word from Israel’s God, to go to war with the Assyrians. So, in fact for Josiah to oppose him, would be for Josiah to oppose Yahweh. 

Jehoshaphat found himself in a problem that he did not ask for.  

Josiah found himself in a problem that he asked for.  

There are problems you ask for in life and then there are problems you do not ask for in life.  

If you did the asking, then you need to take stock, repent asap, pray fervently and figure out what you need to do on your part to remedy the situation. You need to actively respond on your knees and on your feet. 

If, however, you did not do the asking, then like Jehoshaphat, then you can rest confident that this situation is, on balance, God’s responsibility, and not yours. So, you can approach the throne of grace with confidence to find help in this time of need. Your responsibility in the matter may be no more than a matter of prayer. God will be the main Mover in your life. Just do not let go of prayer. In any event, whatever the situation, your response to the situation begins with prayer.