Joel 2:1

Joel 2:1 Blow the trumpet1 in Zion;
sound the alarm signal on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land shake with fear,
for the day of the Lord is about to come.
Indeed,2 it is near!3 (NET Bible)

Shouldn't this always be our mindset as Christians? Shouldn't we live our lives in fear and trembling, hoping that our LORD will return? Jesus even says that He will return "like a thief in the night." That is, at time when He is not expected. Basically, what all this means is that we just don't know when Jesus will return. It's best to be ready.

I like to think of it this way. My wife has the gift of hospitality. She likes the house to be in order at all times just in case some one should happen to drop in for a visit. She doesn't mind a little bit of clutter. We do live in the house after all and we do have two young boys and a puppy so the house is never in perfect order. But, real messes need to be taken care of as soon as possible. When a guest arrives, there just isn't time to clean. Not to mention, that would just be plain rude. Our guest must always be our main focus.

And, there it is. There is the gist of what we are talking about in today's conversation. When Jesus returns, it will be too late to clean up all of our messes that we have been putting off or otherwise ignoring. When He arrives we have to give Him our total attention. Just like our houses, I don't think Jesus will necessarily expect us to be perfect. He knows what it is like to be human, after all. But all those little messes in out living rooms really need to be given the attention they deserve, for our Guest's sake if not for ours.

LORD help us prepare for your return. Our lives are not as they should be aNd they require the kind of cleaning that only You can provide. Pour Your Holy Spirit on us and in us and through us. Remove the stains of our past and protect us from the messes of our future. You are our LORD and our savior and we are longing to see you again. So come and be our Guest. In Jesus' name, AMEN.

Is there sin in your life that you know about? Clean it up. Is there sin on your life that you don't know about? Ask God to show it to you and ask Him to provide the means to clean it up. He'll be glad you did and so will you.

You're doing great!

In Christ,

Christopher

(THE VOICE: a devotional Day 5)