God took me to Joel 1 this morning, specifically verse four. As I was reading, I wondered if I heard right. What does locust have to do with anything? Then I dug deeper and realized Joel was talking about what was going to happen to Judah at that time. It was not a picture of what it would be like in the final judgment from God but was what was going to happen then. Verse four reads in the New King James Version:
What the chewing locust left, the swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.
I read from Enduring Word Bible Commentary about a plague of locust in today's Israel and Syria in 1915. The first swarms came in March, in clouds so thick they blocked out the sun. The female locusts immediately began to lay eggs, 100 at a time. Witnesses say that in one square yard, there were as many as 65,000 to 75,000 eggs. In a few weeks they hatched, and the young locusts resembled large ants. They couldn’t fly yet, and got along by hopping. They marched along 400 to 600 feet a day, devouring every speck of vegetation along the way. After two more stages of molting they became adults who could fly – and the devastation continued.
This time with the locust was one that would be talked about for generations. It was a time never experienced before. Matthew Henry shared how God is in control of all creatures. He can make any creation do as He desires. He wrote: God is Lord of hosts, has every creature at his command, and, when he pleases, can humble and mortify a proud, rebellious people, by the weakest and most contemptible creatures. It is just with God to take away the comforts which are abused to luxury and excess; and the more men place their happiness in the gratifications of sense, the more severe temporal afflictions are upon them. The more earthly delights we make needful to satisfy us, the more we expose ourselves to trouble.
Will we see something of this sort come down upon us? What will God allow to happen or do to us as a rebellious people? Times are tough but how tough will they become? What is it going to take to get people to realize God is what they need in this life to not just through the temporal aspects of life but to spend eternity with Him? It is human nature to choose the easy road but we know from Matthew 7:13-14 which road we need to take.
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." NKJV
Matthew continues in verses twenty-four through twenty-seven about how we are to live our life built on the Rock. He must be the foundation of our life if we desire to live with Him for eternity. No matter what comes our way we must be ready in our faith and trust Him. He desires us to be strong in Him. The desire of His heart is for us to be so strong in our faith others will desire what we have in Him. Woo hoo!
Dear Jesus,
Thank You for the reminder this morning of what I need to do to be ready for whatever tough days are ahead! Thank You for loving me so greatly! Thank You for the rest You provided yesterday! Thank You for being with me as I continue to take care of insurance, death certificate, etc.! Father, cleanse me so You can fill me to overflowing with more of You. May You ooze out of my words, actions, attitude, and thoughts today in a meaningful way. Lord, be with Corey today with Kirstin's service. May he feel Your presence and strength. I pray the same for Nadine today. Lord, I pray for believers to live as You desire, loving on people with Your love so more people will come into relationship with You. I pray for bi-vocational pastors who are pulling together the sermon You desire of them to preach tomorrow as this is their 'day off' from their regular job. I pray for pastors who are struggling with what You desire of them to preach to hear from You today. Lord, continue to empower us all. Thank You for continuing to be with me through this time of adjustment without Doc here with me! Thank You for the way You continue to give me exactly what I need, when I need it! Thank You for being My Foundation! Amen.
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