Author: <span>Christine Lindstrom</span>

Joel 2:21

“Be not afraid, O land; be glad and rejoice. Surely the LORD has done great things.”

Okay, it’s one thing to ask us to not be afraid in the face of daunting circumstances. It is quite another to suggest that we should be glad and rejoice. Can you even imagine if someone made a public speech right now and said, “People of Earth, great news! There is a worldwide pandemic! Let’s celebrate the arrival of Covid-19!” Or perhaps the financial reporter is appearing on the news to let us know about how many people filed for unemployment this week. “The numbers are staggering! Rejoice!” Surely the prophet Joel got part of the message lost in translation. Maybe God was speaking about a situation far less dire than what we’re all facing.

If you read the book of Joel (go ahead and do that – it’s only 3 short chapters), the context here is a plague of locusts that devour everything in their path. All crops are destroyed and there is no food. A plague that has an entire nation of people fearing for their very survival should sound familiar to us. And yet this call to replace our fear with gladness and rejoicing. How is that even possible?

The end of the verse clues us in. Surely the LORD has done great things. 

He has done great things. It is implied here that this means we can trust him to do great things again. The harder the circumstances, the more amazing it is when God does something dramatic. Just like we read about in Exodus when God led his people into seemingly inescapable danger in order to reveal his glory when he provided an escape, we know that the more impossible the situation, the more clearly we can see that the solution could only have come from God. God is a bit of a showoff in the best possible way.

When God shows up and shows off in the midst of frightening circumstances, we who know him are comforted and reminded of who he is. We also get one more reference point to remember the next time trouble comes – remember what God did last time? And those who don’t yet know him have a chance to see God’s power and mercy in remarkable and undeniable ways. 

To be clear, I do not believe that God created the coronavirus just so that he could rescue us from it. That isn’t consistent with what we know of his character. But he is choosing to allow it and though I don’t pretend to understand his reasons, I do trust that he will use it for our ultimate good. With God nothing is ever wasted.

Just a few verses later in Joel 2 comes a more well-known passage that means a lot to me. “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten… You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you.” (Joel 2:25-26 NIV)

What a hopeful promise! Other translations use the word restore instead of repay. Nothing is ever wasted and God is able to restore what has been lost, even precious time. It may feel like we are spinning our wheels, stuck in quarantine, wasting our time at best and fearing for our lives at worst. But he who restores all things is still in control. 

Therefore we can choose to silence our fear with rejoicing, for he has done great things. And we believe we’ll see him act again, even in this scary time.

Moment of Beauty

Take a few minutes to worship the God who has done great things with two different worship songs along this theme:

Exodus 14:13 (NLT)

“But Moses told the people, ‘Don’t be afraid.

Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today.’”

A command to stand still sounds pretty familiar, right? Whether we’re calling it quarantine or lockdown or shelter in place or stay at home, most of the world is being asked to stand still in one way or another. Is anyone else a little surprised by how hard that actually is?

My husband is a big fan of movies where either a disaster is threatening to end the world, or the world has already ended and the drama happens in some kind of post-apocalyptic society. Have you ever noticed how many movies there are that fit this genre? Since I don’t share his enthusiasm, I haven’t watched nearly as many as he has, but they are typically heart-thumping adventure stories. We picture what we would do in a similar situation. 

The Covid-19 crisis would make a pretty dull movie. You could probably write a good medical drama, but for most of us there isn’t much action. Imagine a narrator saying, “Then the family streamed movies, played board games, and ordered groceries for curbside pickup.” 

Don’t get me wrong – I’m thankful that I can keep my family home for the safety of ourselves and others. I’m not wishing for more drama in the midst of this. But I am a doer, and I know I’m not alone. Give me something to do in a crisis and I’ll gladly do it. Ask me to sit still and wait? It should be easier, but in many ways it’s not. 

Exodus 14 is a familiar scene for many of us. The Israelites have finally escaped from slavery in Egypt and they’ve begun their journey through the desert, but then Pharaoh changes his mind and sends the army after them. So there they are, cornered against the sea as the army approaches. Destruction seems certain and no one sees a way out. At least they didn’t have a dozen 24-hour news channels describing just how dire the situation is from every possible angle, right? Even without in-depth analysis, they knew the situation was bad. Were they scared? Um, yup.

So how dumb does Moses sound when his two-fold advice is a) don’t be afraid, and b) stand still? Fear is a reasonable response and standing still is absolutely ridiculous. What kind of leadership is that? Do nothing?

I don’t know how much time the Israelites had to contemplate the situation or argue about what to do about it. It doesn’t sound like they had a lot of warning, yet verses 11-12 tell us they took a few minutes to complain about the situation to Moses. I imagine there was a “live to fight another day” group organizing themselves to surrender and return to slavery in Egypt while the “live free or die” gang was preparing to drown themselves in the sea rather than face bondage again. What other option was there?

The beginning of Exodus 14 is pretty clear that God was pulling some strings behind the scenes to walk the Israelites into a seemingly impossible situation so that he could build their faith and reveal his power and glory to them. Generations upon generations pointed back to this day in times of difficulty, reminding each other that they served a God who had made a way through the sea. 

But first, was the choice. They chose to follow instructions they didn’t understand. They chose not to give in to the fear but to simply stand still. Sometimes standing still is the ultimate act of faith – to quiet the voice of fear and watch for the Lord to rescue us from a situation that seems impossible. 

Moment of Beauty:

Take a few minutes to close your eyes and listen prayerfully to the soothing tones of the song Peace Be Still by Stephen Iverson. 

Isaiah 41:10 (NIV)

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Recently my son had a nightmare and rushed to our room in the middle of the night. He stood trembling in the doorway and said, “Mamma, I had a scary dream.” I lifted the edge of my comforter to welcome him under the covers with me. He crawled in and I felt how tense his muscles were and how his pulse was racing. “Do you want to talk about it?” I asked. Sometimes he does, but this time he shook his head no. “I’m afraid if I go back to sleep the dream will come back,” he said. But as he snuggled in beside me, breathing slowed and I felt his body start to relax. I kissed his head and whispered, “You are loved and you are safe.” I could feel the peace return to his body as he fell back to sleep.

So many of the verses that tell us not to fear also tell us how such a feat could be possible. The promise of God’s presence with us is like the fear antidote. There is no promise here that our circumstances will be changed and all the problems solved. Read the rest of Isaiah 41 to put this verse into context. God is reminding his people of who He is. The repetition of the phrases, “I am…” and “I will…” is enough for any English teacher to circle them in red ink with the reminder to add a little variety. But God doesn’t want variety here. He alone is in focus, and when we truly remember who He is, a reminder of His presence is enough to evict fear from our hearts. 

Try reading this verse as though you are hearing one side of a phone call. Let’s add in the other side.

Me: I’m afraid of so many things right now.
God: Do not fear, for I am with you.
Me: But there’s so much uncertainty and it feels like all I hear lately is bad news.
God: Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
Me: That’s easier to say than to do. I don’t know how to trust right now. What if someone I love gets sick and dies? What if I can’t continue to provide for my family?
God: I will strengthen you and help you.
Me: Ok, but I’m so weary already. I don’t know if I can keep going.
God: I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. 

That night when Peter came to me in fear, I didn’t take away the circumstances that caused his fear, and I couldn’t guarantee that when he went back to sleep, the dream wouldn’t return. All I offered him was my presence as a loving parent. And with the trust of a child, this was enough. I want to learn from him. The next time I am struck by fear, I want to run to my loving Father and imagine him lifting the corner of the blanket as He welcomes me to come closer. I want to hear him whisper, “Do not fear, for I am with you,” as peace returns to my body and I rest again in his presence.  

Moment of Beauty:

There is healing to be found in beauty. For today’s moment of beauty, reflect on this artwork by David Bowman and the description of it, written by the artist:

“This piece conveys an intimate, up-close-and-personal feeling of the Savior’s love. Notice how all the lines draw your attention and point towards Jesus’ face in the center. I chose the name “My Child” because the only thing that could compare (even remotely) to Christ’s compassion for us is the love of a parent for his/her child. This image is also intended to put things in perspective. Above all, we are God’s children first. He allows us the privilege of experiencing parenthood for ourselves and we are entrusted to be the mothers and fathers of His children here on earth.”

Artwork used with permission from David Bowman. See more of his work on Instagram and Facebook.