Focus

Stop and thank God for being present with you today. Ask for God’s guidance as you hear God’s voice through scripture and the writer.

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Read

Joel 3:1-8 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

For then, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,  I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgment with them there, on account of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations. They have divided my land,  and cast lots for my people, and traded boys for prostitutes, and sold girls for wine, and drunk it down.

What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will turn your deeds back upon your own heads swiftly and speedily. For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples. You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, removing them far from their own border. But now I will rouse them to leave the places to which you have sold them, and I will turn your deeds back upon your own heads. I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away; for the Lord has spoken.

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Reflect

It seems that when things are going badly in our lives, it is almost as if the whole world takes advantage of the moment and just piles on. It could be a financial difficulty, a health issue, or family turmoil. It could be an act of weather or the car not starting. It could even be the worst locust swarm that has ever been seen. (Joel 1:4) Whatever the issue, we often find ourselves in a battle as everyone seems to want a piece of us. It may seem amazingly unjust; that’s because it is. There is nothing loving about sweeping into a situation just to gain an advantage, to make a profit, or just to kick someone while they are down. It is easy to see this in the last days of Jesus’ life; everyone piles on and takes a swing at Him. It is in the midst of these trials that we need to hear God state that this injustice will not stand; God sees it and will fight to get God’s children back on their feet. As we live our lives, let us always remember that the tomb was empty.

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Pray

God, our prayer is simple. Help us live in this difficult world. Help us to see that You are working to make things just and right. Help us God to be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem. Amen.

Go with God!