SWHW Bible Reading Plan: June 2021Sample

Top Takeaway from Liz Patton:

“Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.” 2 Kings 23:25

What a beautiful legacy!  I mean, wouldn’t you love for the same to be said about you someday?  

So what exactly made King Josiah stand out from all of the other kings who came before and after him? 

• He turned to the Lord with all his heart, soul, and strength.   


• He got rid of the physics, household gods, idols, and every other kind of detestable practice. 


• He obeyed every detail of the Law of Moses and trusted God completely.

Let’s do a little heart check today.  Those three characteristics of king Josiah are simple but they’re not easy.  They require intention and wholehearted devotion.  Let’s look at each one:

Turning to the Lord with all of our heart, soul, and strength means turning away from the world; being counter-cultural, and not being concerned with the fleeting and temporary things of this world.  

Getting rid of idols is very individual and varies for each of us, but I think the reason idols become so powerful in our lives is that we don’t often acknowledge they even exist.  We often still think of them as the golden statues like they had in the Old Testament, and so we don’t even believe we’ve created them for ourselves.  I love Timothy Keller’s definition of an idol: “It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give.”

Based on that definition, let’s ask ourselves, 'What has become more important in our lives than God?"  Once we know what it is, it’s necessary that we repent of it, and lay. it. down.

Lastly, Josiah obeyed the Law of Moses.  Not only did he obey it for himself, but he also read the entire thing to the people!  Back then, this would have just been the book of Leviticus, but can you just imagine reading the entire book of Leviticus to a large group of people? 

What I find fascinating about Josiah is not so much his godliness, but more so his godliness in his day.  He lived among some pretty wicked people, so this made his godliness even more remarkable.

Yes, the world we live in can be loud, but God’s voice is always louder if we listen!

Dear God, it’s our heart’s truest desire to turn to You with all of our heart, soul, and strength.  If we have anything in our lives that has become more important than You, reveal it to us, so that we can lay it down and turn our hearts fully back to You.  Give us the courage to obey every word in Your Holy Word and trust You completely.  We love You.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.