The Way Forward through Reflection

There are times in the lives of church going Christians when things become a little flat, spiritually. Our practice of Christianity becomes rote. People aren't coming to Christ. We're just going to church, listening to good preaching and going home. For many, the passion is gone. In its place there is a sterile religious behavior. This even happened in the days of the Old Testament. Whenever people lost sight of who God is, and what God does, He would call them back to Himself, and move them forward through an event known as Sacred Assembly. Josiah, Hezekiah, Nehemiah, and Joel all called for Sacred Assemblies. We will be doing that as a church, because in order to move forward, we need to first look backward in order to prepare our hearts for a fresh meeting with the Lord. Several action steps are called for:

1. God Prompts Us to Reflect. Israel needed to reflect on the things of God. And, what Joel is calling all of us to is an extended time of reflection to seek God and see what He wants us to do, personally and as a church! Pick a time. Stop, reflect, listen, be quiet, journal your response to the questions on the sermon outline. Be still for 5 minutes a day. We will practice silence at the end of this sermon before the Lord’s Supper.

2. God’s Prompt to Reflect is Followed by a Call to Repent. The Hebrew word for repent here is translated "return", or "turn around". So repentance is doing an about face! It's going in one direction, changing your mind, turning around, and going in the exact opposite direction. So, what in your life needs a change of direction? What behaviors, motives, attitudes, or practices is God asking you to deal with?

3. When God Prompts to Reflect and God’s People Repent, God Promises to Work. When we humble ourselves before Him, face our stuff, surrender, repent, and say "God, do what ever you want", He will choose to work in our midst. He’ll do it in our church, in our homes, in our marriages and careers, in our own personal lives. When we let God reveal to us those areas where growth is needed, and then respond in faith through repentance, God works.