Monday, June 13, 2011

Today's Ruminating in the Word of God: Mourn, weep and wail!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Joel 1:8,
 
"Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth grieving for the husband of her youth."
 
I take great pleasure in reading the Scriptures. I seek to find out all I can about my Creator, our wonderful God who has given us life and everything else. I really delight in finding out things about this person who created me, his desires, what moves and motivates him, what drives his love and compassion, as well as his anger and wrath.
 
In this prophecy given Joel, God's people are told to weep and wail, Joel 1:5,11,13; to mourn (our verse above); to despair and grieve, 1:11, to put on sackcloth (a sign of grieving), 1:13; to cry out, 1:14; to tremble, 2:1; to return to the Lord with fasting and weeping and mourning, 2:12; and to rend their hearts, 2:13.
 
How often, when people are put into a position where they find themselves weeping, wailing, mourning, despairing, grieving or crying out, they assume it must be the devil that is behind the source of pain. However, what is going to befall God's people in Joel's prophecy, is from God himself. "Alas for that day! For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty." Joel 1:15. Devastation is going to befall them from the hand of their Lord.
 
The cause for this call to God's people to mourn is that they had strayed from him, "return to me with all your heart", 2:12. I learn from this that God seeks the hearts of his people. I note he isn't asking them to be more religious, to go to church every Sunday, to abide by the membership covenant of their local assembly, to send in their faith promise pledge of $1,000 or to go to the weekly men's fellowship meeting. He asks his people to give him their hearts.
 
When the Lord's people stray from him he will bring what it takes to have their hearts. From one standpoint it is heart-warming to see how ardent the Lord is for the hearts of his people. From another, it is quite sobering and fearful to see what he will bring into our lives, if need be, to bring us back to him.
 
The Lord has his own agenda and he will have his way. We may stray for a while, but in the end, he brings about what his heart desires-- and his desire is for our hearts!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

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