Mourn like a virgin bride

Do you know how to mourn? We just don’t do ‘sad’ very well, do we? When crisis hits, when life goes into reverse, we do all we can do to leave the sorrow behind as quickly as possible. We tell those who are broken, “the sun will come up tomorrow!” I am all for encouraging others and being positive. There is a time to mourn, however. There is a time to let ourselves feel the weight of life’s brokenness and to be driven by grief to real humility before God.

The prophet Joel received a message from Yahweh following a terrible plague of locusts that left the land desolate, the people starving, and not even food enough for the ritual offerings to be made in the temple. "Despair, all you farmers! Wail, all you vine growers! Weep, because the wheat and barley— all the crops of the field—are ruined." (Joel 1:11, NLT) "Dress yourselves in burlap and weep, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! Come, spend the night in burlap, you ministers of my God. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God." (Joel 1:13, NLT)

To drive home the point, God says, "Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth grieving for the husband of her youth." (Joel 1:8, NIV) This line speaks of the young girl, betrothed but not wed, who’s fiancé dies prior to the consummation of their marriage. Her prospects for a good marriage were then severely diminished, hence her deep sorrow!

What’s the point of all this sorrow? Repentance!

The crisis that had befallen the land was a call to consider God’s place in life, to step away from the business of everyday life for a time to reflect on how God might be speaking to His people in that moment. Mourning provides a unique opportunity for the Spirit of the Lord to work in our hearts. When we are at the end of our rope, out of options, broken-hearted we are often ready to hear His voice in a new way.

Disciple, have the locust eaten your crops? Probably not literally, but perhaps you’re in a terrible time of life. There is no way to understand why it’s happening. We cannot see far enough into the future or connect the dots to the past. Joel offers no reasons why the locusts came to Judah either. Unlike some other prophets, he does not point to some sin as the cause of the plague. Stepping over the ‘why’ question, Joel exhorts God’s people to let themselves feel the sorrow, to allow it to drive them to humility, and then to accept the comfort of God! What sound counsel.

Will you stop focusing on why the situation that breaks you has come? Are you willing to mourn like a virgin bride? If so, you will find a new depth of holiness, a new kind of intimacy with Him, if you are willing to relinquish your demands for ease and happiness. It’s not a word we eagerly receive, but it’s true.

Here’s a word from the Word. Ponder it in light of Joel’s word.

"As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?


If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever?


For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way." (Hebrews 12:7-11, NLT)

_______________

Spirit of the Living God,
Fall fresh on me.
Spirit of the Living God,
Fall fresh on me.
Melt me, mold me,
Fill me, use me.
Spirit of the Living God,
Fall fresh on me.

Spirit Of The Living God
Iverson, Daniel
© 1935. Renewed 1963 Birdwing Music (a div. of EMI Christian Music Publishing)

CCLI License No. 810055