Grow! Pray! Study! United Methodist Church of the Resurrection for Monday, 10 February 2014 "The invitation to dream with God"

Grow! Pray! Study! United Methodist Church of the Resurrection for Monday, 10 February 2014 "The invitation to dream with God"
Daily Scripture:  Joel 2:23 “Be glad then, you children of Zion,
    and rejoice in Yahweh, your God;
    for he gives you the former rain in just measure,
    and he causes the rain to come down for you,
    the former rain and the latter rain,
    as before.
24 The threshing floors will be full of wheat,
    and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,
    the great locust, the grasshopper, and the caterpillar,
    my great army, which I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied,
    and will praise the name of Yahweh, your God,
    who has dealt wondrously with you;
    and my people will never again be disappointed.
27 You will know that I am among Israel,
    and that I am Yahweh, your God, and there is no one else;
    and my people will never again be disappointed.
28 “It will happen afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
    and your sons and your daughters will prophesy.
    Your old men will dream dreams.
    Your young men will see visions.
Reflection Questions:
Israel had faced a ruinous locust plague. The prophet Joel saw that as God’s judgment on a nation that had lost its moral compass (cf. Joel 2:1-2). But, like most of the Old Testament prophets, he did not believe that judgment was God’s final word. He promised that God would restore the land with good crops. Even more important, he said God would energize and renew them with an outpouring of spiritual vision on old and young alike.
Israel was mainly an agricultural nation, so it made sense that vines and crops were major symbols and measuring sticks of their well-being as a nation, spiritual as well as material. What symbols, measuring sticks or other indicators in your life help you to assess the state of your relationship with God?
In what ways are you currently choosing to live in righteousness and justice? What dreams and visions do you have for your personal progress in living out righteousness and justice? What dreams and visions do you have for your church in being a force for righteousness and justice? What next steps can you take to begin making these dreams and visions real?
Today's Prayer:
God, without you I can only do human things. I need you. By Your Spirit help me to know and live what is right, being eager to do your will. Amen.
Insight from Chris Folmsbee
Chris Folmsbee is Resurrection’s Director of Discipleship Ministries  He is the author of several books, with an extensive background in applying principles of spiritual growth to real life. He, his wife Gina and their family have been attending Resurrection since 2008.
Read and Reflect:
(Head)
In August of 1874, the Rocky Mountain Locust invaded Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and Western Missouri. These locusts destroyed thousands upon thousands of acres of various crops. This, as you can imagine, devastated the trade of the entire Kansas City region. It has been said that the locusts “came in immense clouds and literally covered the region” and sometimes “they were so numerous as to darken the sunlight.” It has also been recorded that “…nothing escaped them; there appeared to be nothing they would not eat; at least there was nothing that they did not eat; and in their progress they left the country nearly as bare of vegetation as if it had been scorched by fire.” It is estimated that these locusts destroyed one total year’s crop.
The Israelites today’s reading first spoke to were no strangers to locusts and the devastation they cause. Locusts had destroyed their land. Joel, the prophet and great man of faith, said God had sent them, and he called the people of Israel to repent of their sins. Joel believed that far greater than the devastation caused by the locusts was the devastation caused by the spiritual lives of the Israelites. Joel called the people of Israel, specifically the farmers, to lament for
their loss of products (crops and vines, 2:11-12) knowing that the health of these products was a symbol of their relationship with God.
God promises to ultimately restore all that had been lost in the plague of locusts (2:18-19) to those who repented. When we pick up the reading for today in 2:23, we learn that God will bring the autumn rain and the spring rain and heal the land. God waits eagerly to heal the land, and longs for people to live in righteousness and justice.
We end our reading for today with the promise of God’s Spirit poured out on the people (2:28). Joel prophesies into the future, knowing that far more significant than rain that will heal the land is the coming Spirit that will heal the soul, igniting within the people the righteous and just life God so desires. Joel said this will be for all the people, all believers, regardless of age, gender
or status. The days Joel prophesied about would be marked by spiritual
renewal found in new dreams and visions.
1 http://www.hearthstonelegacy.com/when-the-skies-turned-to-black-the_locust-
plague-of-1875.htm
Prayer and Meditation
(Heart)
God, look upon me and hear my prayer during this and every day.
By the good works you stir, help me to discipline my mind, body and soul and to be
renewed in spirit.
Without you I can only do human things. I need you, God.
By your Spirit help me to know and live what is right, being eager to do your will.
Teach me to find new life through confession and forgiveness.
Keep me from sin, and help me live by your commandment of love.
God of love, bring me back to you. Send your Spirit to make me strong
in faith and active in good works.
Fill my heart with love for you, and with your love for others,
keeping me mindful of and faithful to the good news of Jesus Christ.
Give me the grace and mercy to rise above my sinfulness and weaknesses.
Give me new life through the renewing of my mind, body and soul.
Amen.
Be, Do & Go
(Hands)
Sometime today, take 5 minutes and be still. Take a moment to make a list of all of the areas in your life where you find sin. After making this list say this prayer:
Gracious God, our sins are too heavy to carry, too real to hide, and too deep
to undo. Forgive what our lips tremble to name, what our hearts can no
longer bear, and what has become for us a consuming fire of judgment. Set us
free from a past that we cannot change; open to us a future in which we can
be changed; and grant us grace to grow more and more in your likeness and
image, through Jesus Christ, the light of the world. Amen. 2
After you have said this prayer, crunch up your list of sins and throw them in the
nearest garbage receptacle.
2 Adapted from the PCUSA Book of Common Worship, Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1993; p.
For Discussion:
Use this section to help prompt discussion with your spouse, children, small group, etc.
1. Have you ever experienced a famine, drought or other form of natural devastation?
2. The Israelites had vines and crops. What are the symbols in your life that represent
your relationship with God?
3. In what ways are you currently choosing to live in righteousness and justice?
4. What dreams and visions for the church do you have? What next steps can you take

to begin making these dreams and visions real?
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