King Hezekiah was one of Israel's best leaders. He was just 25 years old when he began his reign and the very first thing he did was to restore the Lord's people to their God. They had abandoned him and his dwelling place; turned their backs on him and were worshipping foreign gods. Where, and with whom, did he start?

"In the very first month of the first year of his reign, Hezekiah reopened the doors of the Temple of the Lord and repaired them. He summoned the priests and Levites … and said to them, 'Purify yourselves, and purify the Temple of the Lord … Remove all the defiled things from the sanctuary … I will make a covenant with the Lord … so that his fierce anger will turn away from us. My sons, do not be negligent any longer! The Lord has chosen you to stand in his presence, to minister to him, and to lead the people in worship and present offerings to him.'"

The Levites mobilized their brothers in a zealous and wholehearted way, but the priests were less conscientious about purifying themselves and dragged their feet. Even so, it took just a few weeks to re-establish true worship and the quality of temple life that was pleasing to God. What the Lord did for his people through Hezekiah led to great rejoicing throughout the whole nation.

I love the way Hezekiah addressed Israel's spiritual leaders with kindness and grace, but also with godly authority. Their first calling was to personal purification; the second to cleansing the Temple and the third to leading public worship. Most of these men would have been older than the king yet he calls them "my sons". He tells them in no uncertain terms that now is not the time to be negligent. He then underlined to them why they had been chosen. Now that we are all priests to our God each priority applies to us.

1. To stand in his presence; to dwell there, awaiting his instructions. Elijah used to say of his own relationship with God "before whom I stand".

2. To minister to him. Isn't that amazing! That God has chosen us to minister to him! That we could even do that! It is the complete opposite of cringing in the fear of unworthiness. It is to run joyfully into his presence!

3. To lead others in worship and to minister to them and on their behalf. We can all do this; especially through our example. I am so blessed watching others lost in wonder love and praise.