Over the course of life, we all suffer some kind of loss. Some things are of a material value. Other things are beyond material value and you can’t put a price on it; like relationships, time, our peace and hope. These things are precious to God and priceless to us. That’s why God truly is in the restoring business.
God wants to be our source of restoration. He wants us to value, however—from the heart—what we hope to regain, so we seek Him and Him alone for restoration. Hear the promise of the prophet Joel:
“So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the LORD your God,
For He is gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm…
…So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,
The crawling locust,
The consuming locust,
And the chewing locust,My great army which I sent among you.”
(Joel 2:13;25)
RELEVANCE
God has always sought to bless His people. He spoke further on the matter:
The LORD will answer and say to His people,
“Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil,
And you will be satisfied by them;
I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.
(Joel 2:19)
Scripture frequently speaks of the grain, new wine and oil. They represent Israel’s staple crops—the fullness of God’s blessings. Where grain represents the provision of God in general, new wine and oil represent the anointing and attributes of the Holy Spirit; truly God’s full blessing.
REFLECT AND RELATE
What are you looking for God to restore?
Ask God to reveal ways He plans to restore. Little by little, He will shed light on truth and reveal elements of His restoration process.
REFERENCES
Isaiah 38:16-17