Joel 2:12-13

 

“Yet even now,” declares the Lord,

    “return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

    and rend your hearts and not your garments.”

Return to the Lord your God,

    for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;

    and he relents over disaster.

We know Joel is a prophet because his book starts with- "The word of the Lord came to Joel."  He is a minor prophet because we don't know much else about him! We're not sure when he lived and wrote this book;  however, he quotes other authors of the Old Testament, so we know he is well-read. The book starts with an invasion of locusts, much like the plague on Egypt in Exodus.  But this time, the swarm is invading Judah, the southern kingdom of Israel.  Joel calls on the priests to repent (Joel 1:13-18) in hopes that God will remove this plague from among them.  In 1:19, Joel joins the priest in prayer for deliverance.  In chapter 2, he changes his focus to  a future "day of the Lord", a common theme among the prophets.  Joel 2:1-11 raises an alarm of a day quickly approaching, a terrifying day of darkness and gloom, fear and trembling, an invading army unlike anything the world has ever seen.  The army burns everything in it's path and leave flames in it's wake.  Everything is beautiful when they enter the land, but they leave it a desolate wilderness.  The people, the heavens, and all of creation shake at the thought of this invading army, whose captain is the LORD Himself, an army of judgment on a rebellious people.  (Joel 2:11) 

"Yet, even now," declares the LORD, "return to me..." Game-changing mercy.  "With all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;..." Game-changing repentance.  God doesn't want a showy "We are sorry!" where we cry our eyes out and rip our clothes, but He wants heart-level change.  He wants us to return to Him, because "He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;.."  His call to "come to Me" is a beautiful call to begin to walk with Him, but "return to Me" has me 😭😭😭😭 "Return" means I've walked away.  "Return" means at some point I'VE broken fellowship and faith with Him.  But God not only wanted me at the beginning, He wants me back.  Though He is slow to anger,  there is anger when we are rebellious.  Yet He is stubborn, loyal, unwavering, dedicated, single-minded in His love for us.  Repent and Return to Him.  💓💓