Title: Healing Ourselves and Healing Our Land/ Topic: Repentance

Today’s Reading: Joel 1; Joel 2; Joel 3; 2 Timothy 1

Scripture: Joel 2:12-19
12 "Even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning."
13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
14 Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing— grain offerings and drink offerings for the LORD your God.
15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly.
16 Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.
17 Let the priests, who minister before the LORD, weep between the temple porch and the altar. Let them say, "Spare your people, O LORD. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, 'Where is their God?' "
The LORD's Answer
18 Then the LORD will be jealous for his land and take pity on his people.
19 The LORD will reply [a] to them: "I am sending you grain, new wine and oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations.

Observation: The book of Joel is a plea from the heart of God for his people to turn from their wickedness and repent so that the Lord can relent from sending devastating judgment that will cause many to die. God is gracious and forgiving but he will only let wickedness go so long before he metes out judgment in order to turn people fro their sin and cleanse a society. He would rather that we cleanse ourselves through repentance. We start with confessing and turning from our own sins and then we can intercede for our land so that our whole society is benefited. There is a time for spiritual leaders to call everyone who loves the Lord to put aside their amusements and fast, pray, weep, and seek forgiveness and healing from the Lord. These times are not fun and far too many Christians are unwilling to discomfort themselves to enter into this spiritual work.

Application: I believe we are in a time when the Church needs to fast, mourn, weep, repent, and intercede for ourselves to be filled with passion for God and for our land to be healed. It takes engaging our will to obey this sort of Word from God, because when we are in a state of spiritual apathy, our emotions won't lead us to “feel” like doing this. We must discipline ourselves to fast and to enter into weeping and mourning for our sin and the sins of others by faith and an act of our will.

Prayer: Father, help me to obey you in this and to lead others into this also. I feel your coming is near and we need to live holy lives and heal ourselves and our world by interceding for revival. Pour out your Spirit upon us Lord. Forgive us for indulging our flesh and letting our world become so polluted morally. Come, heal your people and our land. Move among us in power and show your glory through us.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.