Oswald doesn't mention what King Asa did in the very next chapter of II Chronicles. When the king of Israel attacked Judah, Asa took money from the temple treasury to bribe Ben-Hadad, king of neighboring Aram, into partnering with him in a fight against Israel. Asa didn't turn to God. Rather, he stole from God to gain help from an earthly king.
In chapter 15, Asa was said to be faithful to God in the main; his only failing was that he left the "high places," the idolatrous shrines. In chapter 16, however, when trouble came, he forgot God and looked elsewhere for help.
God's response to Asa: "Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the Lord, he delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will have war," II Chronicles 16:7-9. Pretty stiff consequences.
Is this the danger in my life? If I leave areas of sin unattended, might they become like the yeast that spreads and cause me, in a moment of urgent need, to seek help from other gods?
I am really challenged by Oswald's call to diligence. How often do I tell myself that I deserve a break, a moment of escape? Oswald's reply: "You no more need a holiday from spiritual concentration than your heart needs a holiday from beating. . . You cannot have a spiritual holiday and remain spiritual."
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