Day 14: Holiness

Joel 1:14, 2:12 (NIV) Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord. … Even now, declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.

The prophet Joel spoke to God’s people in a time of crisis. Swarms of locusts were devastating their crops because they had sinned against God, and Joel knew what they must do to stave off this divine judgment.

In calling for a “holy fast,” Joel was declaring the need for a corporate demonstration that the people were serious about living holy before God. Fasting expressed genuine repentance and consecration. It was a means of returning to the Lord for His mercy, forgiveness and cleansing.

Joel’s words still hit the mark today. We may not face a locust plague but we are reaping severe consequences for our sins as a nation. God’s people need to come together to acknowledge that we have sinned against Him. We must consecrate ourselves in a fresh way to holy living by fasting and crying out to the Holy One, turning back to Him with all our heart.

Then this season of consecration needs to translate into a consistent, daily life of devotion. A time of fasting can help break sinful practices and patterns in our lives as we submit ourselves completely to God. Then we have the opportunity to establish new patterns of godly living that honor the Lord and invite Him to restore what the locusts have eaten.

Prayer: Holy God, we acknowledge that we have sinned against You. Through this time of corporate fasting we turn back to You for forgiveness and the power to live holy. We ask that You would be honored and the name of Jesus lifted up in our lives, in Your church and in this nation. Thank you for hearing and answering us as we cry out to You. In Your holy name. Amen.