Focus

Are you tired? Take this time to rest. Relax every part of yourself. Breathe slower. Be ready for what God has before you today.

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Read

Joel 2:12-13,28-29

Yet even now, says the Lord,
return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

rend your hearts and not your clothing.
Return to the Lord, your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love,
and relents from punishing.

Then afterward
I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
Even on the male and female slaves,
in those days, I will pour out my spirit.

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Reflect

Joel echoes the Abrahamic Covenant when he writes about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all “flesh.” You might remember the last part of the Abrahamic promise, “And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.” Joel makes it clear that this will not be just the Jewish people, but all people. The prophecy reiterates the universality of who can receive the blessing of God’s Holy Spirit when Joel indicates that “your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female slaves.” No ethnicity, culture, class, or gender will be restricted from the outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit.

Joel’s promise needs to be heard today in our culture. The Church offers a path toward racial unity. The vision of unity in the Christian faith is that all physical, national, and cultural identity is subsumed in Jesus Christ. Through the Holy Spirit, the outward characteristics that define us on this earth are replaced with a new nature. We become citizens of a new nation. We become members of a new family. Our earthly values and customs are replaced with the values and customs of heaven.

The Church has proven over the years that Jesus Christ can break down barriers. There is no political or philosophical movement that can adequately deal with oppression of any kind. Oppression is a matter of the heart, not politics. My prayer is that the church will take a role and be an example of breaking down ethnic and racial barriers. Preaching the gospel is the means by which God has chosen to overcome the hardness of the human heart.

 

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Pray

God, remove my blinders. Remove any hatred I have toward anyone. Give me Your Spirit that I might courageously proclaim your message of transformation. Amen

Go with God!