Joel 2:23-26
“Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the LORD your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you— The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame.”
INSIGHT
-We can trace from various prophetic books that after a devastating experiential loss comes restoration. The word restore comprises of the word store and the prefix re. Store means to keep safely and re means you had something that you require back, for instance return, revive, recover, release. Restore therefore means that something was in your store house and it is being returned. The law of restoration can be referenced from the book of Proverbs 6:30-31. “People do not despise a thief If he steals to satisfy himself when he is starving. Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; He may have to give up all the substance of his house.” It is through this law that we learn that the God of restoration restores seven fold; where seven is the number of completion. Prophet Joel therefore gives hope to the Israelites after the locust invasion or plague. After they humbled themselves are repented, a promise of restoration was pronounced. A promise to bring forth the former rain and the latter rain in the first month. This can be linked to the famous scripture 2 Chronicles 7:14, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land”. The Lord of restoration is healing our land and filling our bans with plenty this year and requires us to go back to Him with repentant hearts.
PRAYER
Thank You Lord for You have enabled us to see this new day. It is not by our power nor might but by Your Spirit Lord. Shepherd us through out this week according to Your will. Thank You for providing us, protecting us, leading our way, showing us mercy and giving us joy in our hearts. We humbly implore You Jesus to forgive us all our personal sins, sins of our family members, sins of our nation and those of the whole world. Cleanse us completely merciful Jesus and wash us with Your precious blood. Show us Your path of truth and heal our land dear Jesus. Go ahead of us Lord and make every crooked path straight. Restore us, O God and cause Your face to shine upon us, and we shall be saved. Restore to us what was stolen from us dear Jesus this past decade and accelerate us to the next level according to Your divine will. Furnish us with Your sufficient grace and favor that we may receive everything that belongs to us according to the riches of Your glory. Restore unto us every lost opportunity that has been taken away from us by COVID-19; merciful Father. Every closed business and lost job, restore unto us dear Jesus. Every financial resource that has been stolen from us in the past decade, restore unto us dear Jesus. Every delay that has been occasioned by the closure of learning institutions, restore unto us and our children Father. Every thing that pertains to our lives, families, churches, schools and nation, that has been devoured by the locusts; restore seven fold unto us merciful Father. Thank You for the rains that we recently experienced in the whole nation. We humbly ask that You may bring forth the former and later rains upon us this month, and shower us with Your unending blessings. Bless the work of our hands dear Master and help us to bear much fruit. Only You are the King of kings and Lord of lord. All glory and praise belongs to You Jesus, now and forever. Amen
Isaiah 42:21-22
“The LORD is well pleased for His righteousness’ sake; He will exalt the law and make it honorable. But this is a people robbed and plundered; All of them are snared in holes, And they are hidden in prison houses; They are for prey, and no one delivers; For plunder, and no one says, “Restore!”
INSIGHT
-Prophets Isaiah foretells a prophecy of the Israelites captivity in Babylon and now speaks of their salvation. It was a time that they faced many trials and tribulations. They were robbed and plundered, thrown into dungeons and prisons. It was a time of mourning and weeping, but no one prayed to the God of restoration. No one prayed for deliverance. It is in such a time that we live. Many tribulations and trials come our way. The world is faced with challenges like; COVID-19, wars, floods, earthquakes, locust invasions, drought and famine, extreme poverty, joblessness, poor leadership, corruption, oppression of the poor, hopelessness, diseases, extreme wickedness, idolatry, persecution of Christians and an up-rise in lukewarm Christians. It is a time that God calls us to pray for restoration as such events continue to rob us of our peace. John 10:10, says that, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” After the thief has robbed and plundered the people, the Lord is asking, who will cry to Him “Restore?”. COVID-19 and all these other challenges only come to kill, steal and destroy. They have stolen our businesses, jobs, growth opportunities, future of our children, fellowship and interactions, structure of doing things, health and the lives of our loved ones. The Lord desires that we cry out to Him “Restore”, for He has come to give us life and life more abundantly.
PRAYER
Have mercy on us O LORD, for we are weak. Heal us O LORD, for our bones are troubled. Our soul are greatly troubled restore us merciful Father. Look at us with mercy dear Jesus and deliver us. Save us for Your mercies’ sake. For we are weary with groaning; all night that make our beds swim and drench our couches with tears. Hear our cry and deliver us. Deliver us from the oppression of the evil one merciful Jesus. Deliver us from the tide of COVID-19, drought and famine, extreme poverty, sicknesses, oppression and delays in our purpose, delay in our prosperity and that of our children, persecution of Christians all over the world, idolatry, witchcraft, sexual immorality, poor leadership, corruption, neo-colonialism and all the wicked schemes of the devil and his agents. Break every chain merciful Jesus. Heal all those who are sick. Restore all those who are in prison. Deliver all the children living in the street from demonic oppression. Restore all the broken relationships and marriages. Deliver our youth from drug addiction and alcoholism. Deliver us all from habitual sins. Break every chain merciful Jesus. Let us experience Your joy. Fill our hearts with Your peace that surpasses all understanding. Fight for us dear Jesus for You came so that we may have life and life more abundantly. Deliver us from all evil and anything in our hearts that is not of Your kingdom. Wash us completely dear Jesus with Your precious blood and make us whole. Create in us clean hearts and renew a steadfast spirit within us. Restore unto us the joy of Your salvation and uphold us by Your generous Spirit. O Lord we put our trust in You, save us. Let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just for the righteous You test their hearts and minds. You are our defense Jesus, save the upright in heart by Your merciful love. All glory and praise belongs to You Jesus. We praise You according to Your righteousness, and sing praise to Your name LORD Most High. Amen
Nehemiah 5:11-12
“Restore now to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their olive groves, and their houses, also a hundredth of the money and the grain, the new wine and the oil, that you have charged them.” So they said, “We will restore it, and will require nothing from them; we will do as you say.” Then I called the priests, and required an oath from them that they would do according to this promise.”
INSIGHT
-Nehemiah is primarily a book about rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and bringing God’s people into a place of worship, peace, security and blessing. Despite the ambition that Nehemiah had while rebuilding the wall, there was opposition that came his way from some leaders and acute drought that affected food supply. When Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and Ashdodites heard that Jerusalem was being restored, they were very angry and conspired to attack them, and create confusion (Nehemiah 4:7-8). The drought was so severe that the Israelites sacrificed all they had for food. It was a desperate situation where some people mortgaged their land, vineyards and houses for food, others requested for preferential treatment in food supply by virtue of them being large families, some borrowed money against the kings tax against their land and vineyards and several others sold their sons and daughters as slaves to access food. It was a loud outcry that revealed the peoples desperate situation. Nehemiah rebuked such evil as the leaders did not hold fast the fear of the Lord. They had even lost their redemptive power that was pronounced free; during the year of jubilee. Nehemiah rebuked the nobles and rulers for this usury and offered a restoration solution. He called on the rulers to restore all the land, vineyards, olive groves, houses, a hundredth of their money, grain, new wine and oil that had been charged. They also brought in priests to make an oath to this effect. This problem must have frustrated Nehemiah that they could not stand so strong against their enemies but fall so quickly to these kinds of problems. Sometimes we face such challenges when the people pay hefty taxes but the resources are not properly utilized to benefit them but corruption takes into play. Others places of worship have been closed down and some worshippers slowly die spiritually. It is a time to pray for restoration and God’s guidance in such matters.
PRAYER
Almighty and Everlasting Father, we come before You this morning thanking You for Who You are and what You have done to us. You have always been Faithful even when we have become faithless. We praise You and bless Your holy name. We declare Your deeds among all people and make mention that Your name is exalted high above every other name. We sing praises to You LORD, for You have done marvelous things in all the earth. God You are our salvation and shield, we put all our trust in You. You are our Strength and Song, our Salvation, save us Oh Lord. Save us from oppression and corruption. Save us from poor leadership and restore us. Save us from those who oppress and persecute Christians all over the world. Give us the grace to rebuild the walls which have been broken in our lives for the glory of Your name. Rebuild broken relationships among family members, broken marriages, and broken souls that have back-slided and follow the wrong paths. Increase us in faith and grant us the gift of wisdom. Journey with us Lord as we build our future. Reveal to us Your deep and hidden things according to Your merciful love. Go before us and guide us in every step that we make. Only You are Holy, only You are God. Only You deserve to be worshipped and praised. Only You are the Rock upon which we stand. Only You are able to rebuild and restore. All glory and honor belongs to You Jesus, now and forever. Amen
Job 42:10-17
“And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then all his brothers, all his sisters, and all those who had been his acquaintances before, came to him and ate food with him in his house; and they consoled him and comforted him for all the adversity that the Lord had brought upon him. Each one gave him a piece of silver and each a ring of gold. Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-Happuch. In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. So Job died, old and full of days.”
INSIGHT
-Job was a blameless, upright and God fearing man. He was shaken adversely by the devil who was permitted by God to take everything but his soul. The devil being a master of destruction, who kills, steals and destroys after forming an accusation against the brethren, he took away Jobs children, livestock and brought forth disease in form of boils on his body. Like the Psalmist, he must have cried to the Lord, “I have done what is righteous and just; do not leave me to my oppressors” (Psalm 119:121). Despite the calamity that befell him, he did not curse God. Job prayed for his friends and was restored. Whatever he lost was restored double to him. He lived to see four generations and was extremely blessed. Psalms 37:9 reveals that, “For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.” Like Job, we are called to be faithful always despite the trials that come our way and we will see the light of God’s salvation. We should not despair but remember that, the blessing of the Lord makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it (Proverbs 10:22).
PRAYER
Abba Father, our Father and Friend we come to You with humble adoration seeking Your face. Lord You are Faithful and Your faithfulness endures to all generations. Be with us, our family members and friends. Bless us and keep us dear Jesus. make Your face to shine upon us and be gracious to us. Lift up Your countenance upon us and give us peace. Grant us peace from the snares of the evil one. Grant us peace from the tribulations and calamities that come before us. Protect us Holy Spirit with Your hedge of fire. Cover us Jesus with Your precious blood that speaks better things than that of Abel. Restore us Lord in every aspect of our lives. Restore unto all those who are suffering Jesus. Be with the president of America and show him Your way. Protect all Your children Lord all over the world and restore them merciful Father. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from all evil. For thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen
Luke 15:20-24
“And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.”
INSIGHT
-The parable of the prodigal son speaks to us about spiritual restoration. When he was overtaken by trespass and went around squandering his money with prodigal living, he went away from his father. But when he came back to his senses, he made a decision to go back to his father and ask for mercy. When his father saw him coming from a far distance, he ran to him, hugged and kissed him, ordered his servants to clean him up, slaughter for him a fatted calf, change his clothes and he gave him a royal robe and ring. We are children of God and nothing can separate us from His love and that God will always be our Father no matter what. As much as these facts are true, we should examine our lives as we begin this new year, be reconciled to God and keep our faith in Jesus Christ. God is merciful and full of love and calls us to seek Him with all our hearts and shun away from evil. He sent forth His only beloved Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins and restore us back to God. “He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.”(Psalms 23:3)
SUMMARY
Some trees like walnuts tend to drop their leaves early in a process called abscission. In some cases leaf loss coincides with winter during temperate or polar climates. In other parts of the world including tropical, subtropical, and arid regions, plants lose their leaves during the dry season or other seasons, depending on variations in rainfall. It is during such a season that the plants shed off all their leaves to retain water and when it starts to rain again, the plants are restored and become robust in nature and size. The law of restoration works in the same way. According to Proverbs 6:30-31, a thief steals to satisfy himself but when he is caught, he must restore sevenfold what he stole and may be forced to give up all the substance of his house. Restore means that one had something that is being returned, refunded or repossessed back to his storehouse. Job is a perfect example of restoration for he lost all his livestock, children and became sick when the devil attached him. God gave him the grace to persevere and restored double to him. Like prophet Isaiah reminded the people to cry to the Lord for they they had been robbed, plundered and throne into dungeon by the Babylonians, “restore”. Let us ask the Lord to restore us this year. Nehemiah fought for the people who had lost their land, vineyards, olive groves and mortgaged their properties to the noble due to food shortage. Let us ask the Lord to restore all that has been lost given the challenges that many went through last year. Let us begin by asking God for forgive us all our sins and heal our land. This is part of spiritual restoration and our merciful Father will grant us rest. Like the prodigal son, let us go back to the Lord with repentant hearts; and His mercy and grace will always be present with us. Let us also ask the Lord to restore what the crawling locusts, consuming locusts and chewing locusts have destroyed. What the devil has killed, stolen or destroyed. Like the walnuts that drop their leaves early and are restored when it rains, let us ask the Lord to bring forth the former and the latter rains, and satisfy us with plenty due to His merciful love. Let us ask the Lord to restore us spiritually, for when we were dead in trespasses and sin; and walked according to the course of this world, Christ died for us and made us alive in Him (Ephesians 2:1-6).
PRAYER
Thank You Jesus for Your merciful love upon our lives. Thank You for preserving us, providing us, protecting us, leading our steps, showing us Your mercy and grace. We humbly implore You Jesus to forgive us all our sins, sins of our nation, sins of our forefather and those of the whole world. Cleanse us with Your precious blood. Heal our land dear Jesus and restore our economy. Restore to us all that has been stolen from us dear Jesus this past decade and accelerate us to the next level according to Your divine will. Heal our families and grant us the gift of salvation loving Father. Help us to pray again and to remain faithful to You Jesus. Furnish us with Your sufficient grace and favor that we may receive everything that belongs to us according to the riches of Your glory. Restore us Lord and shine Your face upon us. Renew our strength and save us from the snares of the evil one. Restore unto us every lost opportunity that has been taken away from us by COVID-19 and other challenges; merciful Father. Restore every closed business and lost job, dear Jesus. Restore every financial resource that has been stolen from us in the past decade. Restore every form of delay that has happened in our lives. Restore the destinies of our children who have not been learning du to closure of schools. Restore every broken marriage and relationship merciful father. Fight for us dear Jesus. Restore every thing that pertains to our lives, families, churches, schools and nation, that has been devoured by the locusts; restore seven fold unto us merciful Father. Restore us spiritually and light the fire of Your love in us Holy Spirit. We humbly ask that You may bring forth the former and later rains upon us this month, and shower us with Your blessings. Grant us victory in all things dear Jesus. All glory and praise belongs to You Jesus, now and forever. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now, and forever more. Amen