Joel 2:1-2 (NRSV)
Read Joel 2:1-2 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 2Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near- Verse 2a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness spread upon the mountains a great and powerful army comes; their like has never been from of old, nor will be again after them in ages to come.
Devotion
Darkness can be scary. As little boys, my sons sometimes had trouble going to sleep at night because of imaginary monsters under their beds or in their closets. I promised not to let the monsters harm them. I lifted the bed covers, opened closet doors and said to the monsters, “Go away. Get out of here.” My sons would drift off to sleep trusting the promise that the monsters would not harm them.
The prophet Joel says the coming day of the Lord will be a dark and gloomy day. He also promises the people a future day or restoration and blessing would follow.
We all have our dark days with monsters under our beds or in our closets. As Joel points out, in the midst of our darkness, there is hope of a new day. As we begin our gloomy journey through Lent, there is the promise of the resurrection, restoration and new life.
Prayer
Gracious God, be with us in our periods of darkness and let us see a new day of resurrection, restoration and new life. Amen.