Mourning For The Land

Joel 1:11–20
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The farmers and vine growers had reason to mourn since the fruit of their labor had been destroyed (vv. 11-12) Joel cries out to the temple priests to recognize their desperate condition, to gird themselves with sackcloth and to prostrate themselves all night before God in mourning and self  judgment (v. 13).  Then they are to call a sacred assembly of all the people and they are to come to the house of the Lord to fast and cry out before Him (v. 14). A fast was a period of time when no food was eaten and people approached God with humility, sorrow for sin, and urgent prayer. The only meaningful course of action in the light of such a calamity is prayer to God.

Picture the desolation of Israel in Joel’s time as they also portray the conditions of the Great Tribulation leading to “the day of the Lord (vv. 15-20).” They contain a detailed description of the aftermath of the locust plague. All reason to rejoice had disappeared (v. 16). The seed had rotted in the ground and with no harvest available the storehouses and granaries had been left to deteriorate (v. 20). The prophet Joel clearly identifies with his suffering nation as they cry out to the Lord in their hour of extreme peril (v. 19). All of this nightmare of horror only typifies the staggering destruction which will occur when “the day of the Lord” arrives. Without God destruction is sure.

It shouldn’t be this way but sometimes it takes something extreme to cause us  to stop everything and set aside a special time to seek God and pray? When things are desperate enough, when we’ve really come to the end of our rope, when we have NO resources left to face a problem, when we are totally beaten down, totally defeated, when there’s no one left to turn to, THEN, dropping everything and coming to God seems like it’s the most logical, natural thing in the world to do. (vv. 13-17). Be sure to call on God’s love and mercy while you have the opportunity (2:32).

Application

What do I need to do when a crises comes into my life? I can sit and wring my hands in despair or I can cry out to the Lord and seek the combined prayers of God’s people?