Give God Your Heart, He had it first!

In the last couple of days I've been reading Genesis. I just finished the book. In between my readings a friend of mine told me to look at Amos. On my way to Amos I stumbled across the book of Joel. And family, let me tell you as a child of God, not new to His love but new to fully recognizing His love, I definitely felt the love of our God after reading that book. In just 3 chapters He showed me such love and strength.

In this book Joel the Prophet gives an account of a terrible locust invasion. The locusts come in thousands on their land eating up everything. Joel said it was like God leading them, an army across the lands. Joel 1:11 "The Lord thunders at the head of His army; His forces tremble are beyond number, and mighty are those who obey His command. The day of the Lord is great; It is dreadful. Who can endure it?" Talk about total devastation?! There was nothing left. Here is Joel telling these people do you see what God can do!? Make sure you tell your children so they can tell their children and so on.

Joel urged the priests to prepare a national day of prayer to honor our Eternal God because he knew that It was God and only God who controlled the locusts and could restore what they had destroyed.

What got me the most was these verses Joel 1:12-13" 'even now,' declares the Lord, 'Return to me with all your heart, with fasting weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love and He relents from sending calamity.' "

This to me is saying that even in times of devastation "return to me with all your heart". No matter what happens return to Christ because he is a loving and compassionate God. Back then people used to mourn and show anguish by tearing their garments. But God wanted more than external change, He wants to see the change in your heart. WOW.

Our insides and our outsides need to be on one accord. You cant do things of the world but be of Christ on the inside. People are not going to recognize you as a child of the Most High, if you are of the world in your spirit. There is a song out now called "King in You" by Donald Lawrence and Donald said his father was a pastor and when he would act up his father would ask him "do you know who you are?" He's saying that we are children of God. If we came from him and are made in His image then we have Him within us. When your heart and your flesh conflict, your spirit gets confused because you're not 100% sure..no, convinced of who you are. You have to believe that He lives in you.

Its not going to be easy at first to get your flesh and your spirit to be one. But as i stated in the last post, you can recognize the need to do it, but that's not enough. You have to have that desire for them to be one. In your heart. When you place your heart in to the world it hurts God because He gave you that heart. He knows what you are capable of. God knows your heart! Its His, give it back. Love y'all, stay blessed!