He did not turn aside

And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. – 2 Kings 22v2

Ever since I discovered Josiah a few years ago he has been one on my heroes. There is so much to like about him and his reign. Things had been going downhill for a while. Israel was already gone and Judah was growing weaker and weaker. Josiah was just a boy when he became king, but we get to learn about him early on in his reign.

‘He did what was right in the sight of the Lord. He walked in the ways of David,’ God said, ‘and he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.’

This is the kind of testimony that I like. Josiah just did not waver. He stayed on track. He kept his eyes on the goal. He is kind of like the runner in Hebrews 12 who patiently runs the race while keeping his eyes on Jesus.

I can’t help but think of Christian in Pilgrim’s Progress. He had a path to stay on. When he stayed on the path he had things to deal with, but the passage was bearable. He got himself in serious trouble when he wandered off the path.

A lot of our lives is just plodding away, keeping our eyes on the goal, and staying on track.

I like to keep Josiah in mind when I think about this goal.