AND I WILL RESTORE....

“You will again have compassion on us, you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:19)

Somehow as life’s stream begins to ebb, we suddenly become awakened as we are jolted to our senses. We begin to reflect on the number of years squandered ‘doing our own thing’ in the wilderness, without any regard to the timetable of our lives set out by God. Wrongfully, we have believed in our strength and resourcefulness. It becomes evident that we have believed in a lie that we could make it on our own.

At the height of it all, we had forgotten that one day our sun will set and that we shall depart this earth for our everlasting abode in either heaven or hell. It suddenly dawns on us that we would have to render account of our stewardship - for the life we are living is not our own. As we ruminate on the past: our past failures, shortcomings and inadequacies, we enter into a stage of remorse - that ‘if I had known’ kind of feeling. If we are not careful depression sets in.

That is the time we have an urge to make it right with God. We realise all of a sudden that we cannot continue to play solo. Life has a purpose and that purpose is determined by God and none other. The years we have given away to idleness, waywardness and self-will have borne no good fruit.Well, the good news is that all is not lost. Our God is a merciful God. Never mind what the devil has been blasting in your ears. It is time to make a comeback, to repent of our sins and return to God. Our Lord and master Jesus says; “...and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.” (John 6:37) God, the Almighty promises; “And I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent against you.” (Joel 2:25)

Sin in its diverse forms, along with sickness, poverty, lack, malice, greed and pride have robbed us of the fullness of life and have affected the quality of life that we should have lived.

Much of the time we blame it on God rather than on Satan and ourselves. God is not our enemy but our Father, our Great Provider and our eternal reward. He is the lifter of our heads also.

Israel, God’s first-born, qualified a stiff-necked people, has been insensitive to God’s overtures because of her stubborn and wayward inclinations.

Yet in his anger, God has not abandoned her. As adopted sons and daughters, we also will not be abandoned either. Though we have strayed away from God’s path like lost sheep in order to carry out our own agenda, God is saying that he will not hold us responsible for our past behaviours.

He will restore us unto himself. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Jeremiah 31:34)

God sent his only Son to redeem us from guilt and shame and to snatch us from the slavery it has got us into. Where the evil one (the prince of this world) with trickery had us bound, God is declaring us released. God paints a picture we get after a swarm of locust invades a field. In a twinkle of an eye all the greenery is swallowed up and the scene is mere devastation. It is an ugly and pathetic sight to behold. That is what our stubbornness and disobedience have brought us - literally stripped of our inheritage in Christ Jesus.

It is however comforting to note that God’s grace has restored us to our previous position. All that we have lost, he will restore.

We need only repent by turning our backs on our past and surrendering our hearts wholly to him.

The debilitating blow that Satan must have dealt you, grounding you, is not a death blow, it is not definitive. Probably, you never thought you could get over this. The word of God is true. Get up, shake off the dust, there is hope for restoration.

What the devil has stolen from you will be returned to you in Jesus’ name! Our Lord Jesus stated; “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10b)

“I am God the Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.” (Genesis 17:1b) “No good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.” (Psalm 84:11)