“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good,” Gen 1:31.

What happened that there are so many tragic things happening on the earth, such as COVID-19?

 Out of God’s goodness and love, He warned mankind of the consequences of disobedience (sin).

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die," Gen.2:17. Nevertheless, Adam and Eve chose to disobey. As a result, suffering and physical death came to the world. But the worst thing disobedience brings to each person who sins is “death.” The “death” of Genesis 2:17 describes the end of our relationship with God; the loss of our ability to approach him in prayer, Isaiah 59:1-5. Can you imagine the pain this separation brings to God? How sad that it often does not bring pain to us. How wonderful it would be if we obeyed God’s laws, for they are designed to bring us all to great heights of service to Him and to others, Ps.119:104-105. Imagine what a world we would live in if we all were filled with the love of God in serving others! Because many have not heeded the commands of God, we live in a world of suffering due to men being filled with self-centeredness and pride. Selfishness causes suffering to others, and we all know that “pride goes before a destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall,” Prov. 16:18.

 Throughout history, God has used crisis situations, no matter whether they were caused by man’s greed or natural disasters, as “wake-up calls” to motivate men to examine themselves and change for the better. One such crisis is described by the prophet Joel. The entire nation of Judah was plunged into a catastrophe that threatened all life. Huge swarms of locusts had suddenly appeared and devoured all that grew in the ground. Trees were left as white skeletons, being stripped of leaves and even bark. The tragic result: no food anywhere for people or animals.

The name Joel, is made up of Hebrew words which mean “Jehovah is God.” Jehovah means “I Am” – the God who has always existed and the Creator of all things, visible and invisible. He is also in control of all things, the corona virus as well as the locust. Let us closely examine Joel’s exhortation during Judah’s crisis to discover what God requires of those of us who wish to open a way for God to hear our prayers during this crisis and respond.

 1. "Now,” Joel 2:12a. Don’t waste time! Drastic events require immediate attention! Eph. 5:16-17.

2. “therefore,”v.12b. In light of Judah’s present crisis – and any crisis we face.

3. “says the LORD,”v.12c. This affirms that the call for action comes from our “battle-front Commander, the “I AM”.  In the case of Joel, the call went out to all the land of Judah. In our case it must go out to all the world. Serving under His Command knows nothing but great victories, if not in this life, then certainly in the greater life beyond death, Rev.2:10.  

4. "Turn to Me,” v12d. Here we have the key to our victory. We must turn from the destructive pride that grew out of our own accomplishments and turn in obedience to the only true God, the true giver of victory.

5. “with all your heart,” v12e.  The Bible heart refers to our mind, from where all our actions flow, Mtt15:19-20.  Remember God is only willing to hear and bless us if our mind is only fixed on doing His will in everything, Mt.7:21. We must turn away from all sin such as those mentioned in 1 Cor.6:9-10 & Rev.21:8: lies, abortions (murder), homosexuality, sexual immorality, taking advantage of others to gain more for ourselves (covetousness/extortion), and lack of faith (unbelief).

6. “with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning," v 12f. This is very important. God must see in us deep sorrow for all our ungodly actions of putting ourselves above Him. Mt. 5:4.

7.  “So rend your heart, and not your garments;” v 13a. This further stresses God’s great need to see sorrow. He must see a heart painfully torn up by the pain our sins have caused God and others!   See Acts 2:37, 2Cor 7:10.

8. 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. V13b. Here we are called, not only to turn FROM sin, but to return TO our “I Am,” our Commander because we value His great love. Putting ourselves under our Commander means that we obey His commands, not the commands of others. There are many today who “teach as doctrines the commandments of men,” Mt.15:9, resulting in many denominations with their creeds and conferences. Let’s turn TO Jesus Christ and the church HE built, whose work and worship is described in the New Testament.

 9. “Who knows if He will turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him.” v 14. Repentance and obedience do not guarantee the physical blessings that we are praying for, but most importantly, they do bring us back into a good relationship with God, a relationship where He hears our prayers. However, when praying, we must acknowledge that God has perfect vision to see the future and the hearts of all men. His purpose is the spiritual good of all. We must trust God to accomplish His purposes and bring good out of this time of suffering in His perfect timing.

 These are drastic times that call for drastic actions. We cannot know for sure whether or not COVID-19 is God’s direct punishment because of our sin. However, we can say that in every crisis situation, God wants us to examine ourselves and repent if necessary. Let us also look for ways to serve. Our loving actions may open a door for us to be an influence for good in our communities, helping our nation to turn back to the Lord. Let us pray for our leaders, those who sorrow, and those are working to develop tests, cures and vaccines, knowing that the prayer of a righteous man avails much and trusting that God will answer in the best possible way. Let us petition God on behalf of those who are sick. Let us thank God for all who risk their lives for the good of the general public. Finally, let us remember: Jehovah is God.

 Les Maydell,  April 2020