READING: Joel 1-3
I remember the year when the locusts came out when I was serving in Louisville, KY. I vaguely remembered an earlier time in my life when they appeared, but they seemed to be everywhere that year in Louisville. Their sounds from the trees seemed like a quiet roar. Their discarded exoskeletons littered the sidewalks. Tree limbs stripped of leaves were evidence of their destructive power. I know what we saw that year was nothing like the Hebrews experienced in Joel’s day, but I’ve never read the book of Joel the same way since then.
For the agricultural society of Joel’s day, a locust plague was a horrendous disaster — precisely what would be needed to call the people to repentance. The destruction would be complete, indicated by vast repeated swarms of invading insects: “What the locust swarm has left the great locusts have eaten; what the great locusts have left the young locusts have eaten; what the young locusts have left other locusts have eaten” (Joel 1:4). The proper response of the people was to be marked by multiple steps, including leaders mourning over the judgment, calling for a national fast, and gathering the elders to cry out to the Lord (Joel 1:13-14). They were to repent “with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning” (Joel 2:12).
In one of my favorite verses of the Old Testament, God said He would then graciously give back to the people what they had lost: “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten . . . . You will have plenty to eat, until you are full” (Joel 2:25-26). God allows judgment to come, but He then brings restoration and renewal. Indeed, He pours out His Spirit on us (Joel 3:28-29) to convict us, change us, indwell us, and seal us. He is our judge, but He is also our Deliverer and our Restorer.
So, if your life has been marked by waves of judgment and trouble, turn to God today with weeping, fasting and mourning. He can restore the years the locust has eaten.
ACTION STEPS:
- Regardless of the level of your walk with God today, turn to Him with weeping and mourning over your sin. Prayerfully consider setting aside a time to fast this week as well.
- Think about a time when your life was a struggle, but God restored you. Thank Him today for that gift.
PRAYER: “I praise You, Lord, that You restore the bad years with Your grace. Grant me this hope today.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Amos 1-5