“Hear this, O elders, give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your ancestors? Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. …Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.” Joel 1:2-4, 14 … “Yet even now, says the LORD, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the LORD, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD, your God? … Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female slaves, in those days, I will pour out my spirit. … Then everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.” Joel 2:12-14, 28-28, 32 … “Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. … But the LORD is a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel.” Joel 3:14, 17
We, believers in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are under immense attack. Some attackers nibble away little bits at a time. It doesn’t seem so bad, but overtime swarms of attackers taking little bites may end up destroying our foundation of faith. Imagine the devastation to crops after four successive infestations of locusts! Everything chewed down to the soil, nothing left – massive crop failure. Now transfer that to the attacks against God, the one true God, and those who would re-write holiness to mean something other than how God defines holiness and righteousness. Those are attacks on the foundation of our faith. Where do we turn? To whom do we turn? Anyone else than God is another attack. But notice God is waiting for each and every one to repent, to turn, to return to Him. When we do; when each does, there is a joyous celebration. There are multitudes in the valley of decision! What am I, what are you, what are we, The Body of Christ doing to, go and make disciples of each? What refuge are we leading them to? Where are we taking refuge?